Small businesses in Brisbane are set to benefit from the Brisbane City Council joining the Small Business Friendly Councils initiative.
Minister for Employment and Small Business Di Farmer today welcomed Brisbane to the growing list of councils that have signed on to the initiative – developed by the Queensland Small Business Commissioner – designed to promote and support small business.
"Small businesses are the heart and hubs of our local communities and are crucial to our $14.5 billion COVID-19 Economic Recovery Plan," Minister Farmer said.
"They are our families, our friends, our neighbours and they keep our communities strong.
"It's fantastic to see so many councils have committed to the Small Business Friendly Councils initiative and now having Brisbane City Council on board provides added momentum.
"I commend Brisbane City Council for signing the charter and demonstrating its ongoing commitment to work closely with the city's small business community.
"When a council becomes a Small Business Friendly Council, they are pledging their support for small businesses in their community and helping the local economy thrive."
Minister Farmer said the Small Business Friendly Councils initiative had a proven track record. Examples of outcomes achieved included:
- Ipswich City Council, which is reducing red tape to benefit small businesses and has created a range of funding programs to help COVID impacted businesses
- Toowoomba Regional Council, which has reviewed its payment conditions to local suppliers and reduced payment terms from 30 days to 14 days
- Fraser Coast Regional Council, which introduced a Buy Local initiative and created a Fraser Coast gift card. For every $100 spent locally, it provided up to $180 of benefit to the local economy.
- South Burnett Regional Council, which is planning a major revitalisation of Kingaroy town centre and was recently helped by the Queensland Small Business Commissioner's office to connect with Sunshine Coast Regional Council to share knowledge of ways to minimise business disruption.
Queensland Small Business Commissioner Maree Adshead, who today co-signed the Small Business Friendly charter with Minister Farmer and Brisbane Deputy Mayor Krista Adams, said signing the charter marked a commitment to a collaborative journey.
"The co-signing of the Small Business Friendly charter is an example of what this initiative is all about – councils working closely with local small businesses, which ultimately benefits the whole community," Ms Adshead said.
"The signing of this charter marks a commitment to put small business needs and priorities at the forefront when making important decisions.
"I look forward to working with the Brisbane City Council and the Brisbane small business community to create opportunities for business growth."
Ms Adshead said the Small Business Friendly Councils initiative aimed to build a community of like-minded people who wanted to ensure their small business community was flourishing.
"When a council joins the Small Business Friendly family they learn what other organisations are doing to support their small business community," Ms Adshead said.
"We facilitate a network of collaboration, showcase small business friendly activities and support a variety of communities of practice – all of which are helping our small businesses family to share their experience and key lessons, and to fortify their connections."
The Small Business Friendly charter aims to recognise and encourage councils to actively support small businesses to recover and build resilience following disaster and economic challenges.
There are now 33 Small Business Friendly councils across Queensland. When a council signs the SBF charter they are pledging a commitment to:
- communicate and engage
- raise small businesses profile and capability
- support resilience and recovery
- simplify administration and regulation (red tape reduction)
- ensure fair procurement and prompt payment terms
- promote place-based activities.
