“D for dull”: Small business groups lament lack of support and tax reform in budget

The 2024-25 federal budget has left the small business community underwhelmed and disappointed, with some in the sector going as far as handing the Labor government’s third budget a “D for dull”.

While key advocacy groups welcomed the extension of existing measures, including the $20,000 instant asset write-off and energy bill relief, the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA) called these temporary measures “necessary but not sufficient to truly address the issues currently facing small business”.

While COSBOA acknowledged the government’s “commitment to develop a future cutting-edge, AI-embraced, simpler business environment”, it used a budget night statement to declare “small business has been left behind in the government’s strategy of picking winners and providing subsidies to selected industries”.