Federal Member for Lyne Alison Penfold is calling on small business owners from the Hastings to the Hunter to have their say, after she claims her last community survey delivered results strong enough to shake up the gambling debate in Canberra.
Ms Penfold has launched The Bottom Line: Small Business Reality Survey, urging local business owners to “get it off their liver” by sharing their real experiences of rising costs, workforce shortages, housing, infrastructure, energy and government red tape.
“Too often governments think they know best,” Ms Penfold said.
“They regulate more, tax more, ask businesses to fill out more forms and then wonder why productivity has stalled.
“Every successful small business owner knows that if you don’t listen to your customers, you won’t be in business for long. Governments should learn the same lesson.”
The survey includes a dedicated “Get It Off Your Liver” section for business owners to speak candidly about their frustrations, and will help form the basis of Ms Penfold’s advocacy in Canberra as well as a local Small Business Roundtable.
“I don’t want another glossy report that sits on a shelf,” Ms Penfold said. “I want to hear directly from the people who are living these challenges every day so we can identify practical reforms which improve productivity, reduce unnecessary burdens and make it easier to run a business.”
The survey is open to sole traders and larger family businesses alike, and takes about 10 minutes to complete. It closes Friday, 28 August, and individual responses will remain confidential.
It follows Ms Penfold’s Gambling Advertising Reform Survey, which she says received 814 responses from across the Lyne electorate and has already put pressure on the Albanese Government over its gambling advertising legislation.
According to the results released by Ms Penfold’s office, more than 90 per cent of respondents to that survey backed stronger restrictions on gambling advertising, with 71 per cent supporting a complete, phased ban as recommended by the 2023 Murphy Review, well ahead of the 20 per cent who backed the government’s more modest restrictions. Ms Penfold’s office said almost one in three respondents, 245 people, reported they or a family member had been negatively affected by gambling.
“The results demonstrate there is strong community support for reform and that people want Parliament to take meaningful action to reduce gambling harm,” Ms Penfold said.
“While I welcome the fact that the Government has finally acted after years of delay, many people in our community believe the proposed reforms do not go far enough.”
Ms Penfold claims the strength of the response is why she keeps going back to the community for evidence.
“The more businesses which participate, the stronger our case is to get the policies which help your business thrive,” she said.
The Bottom Line: Small Business Reality Survey can be completed at this link.
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