VICTORIA could achieve significant job creation and sustained economic growth from aviation, healthcare and international events if the areas are prioritised in the upcoming state budget, according to the state's peak employer body.
“Building Victoria’s international competitiveness must be a priority of the budget, so industries with demonstrated growth potential can take advantage of the opportunities presented by the Asian century,” says VECCI Chief Executive Mark Stone.
Mr Stone said exciting new R&D capabilities are being progressed in areas like carbon fibre and advanced materials. So too are many Victorian companies leveraging their expertise in primary production, food processing, logistics, branding and investment to help position the state as a food bowl to Asia.
“Healthcare is another good example of where our excellence in research, technology, human resources, products and services could be exported to service Asia’s growing demand for this industry,” says Mr Stone.
He said the government’s international engagement strategy is strongly supported by VECCI and the government should use the 2014-15 budget to accelerate and expand this effort, continuing to partner with industry to strengthen Victoria’s trade and investment presence in priority markets.
Mr Stone’s comments follow the release of the VECCI 2014-15 State Budget Submission: Accelerating Growth and Building Business Success.
Priority VECCI recommendations for building international competitiveness:
- Conduct a VCEC inquiry into the potential for increasing exports of Victoria’s healthcare services, including training, medical R&D and ICT healthcare management.
- Establish an Aviation Industry Strategy that leverages off our aviation education, training, R&D commercialisation and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) capabilities.
- Prioritise funding for the expansion of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (ensuring project completion by 2017) and attract more business events aligned to Victoria’s priority sectors (medicine, science, technology, engineering and education).
- Host a biennial International Victoria Expo that brings exporters, relevant trade service providers, universities, international students, and chamber and consular representatives together to link Victoria’s international trade capabilities with potential partners or service providers.
These priorities must be enacted in conjunction with a range of other recommendations to make Victoria a more competitive place to do business. VECCI also recommends raising the payroll tax threshold from $550,000 to $850,000, or alternatively reducing the payroll tax rate from 4.90 per cent to 4.70 per cent.
Mr Stone said new infrastructure has a vital role to play in helping business get its products and services to markets at home and abroad on time, and at low cost.
“This is why the 2014-15 budget must not only reinforce the government’s intention to deliver Stage 1 of the East West Link, but also progress delivery of Stage 2, ensuring a future port and Western Ring Road connection,” says Mr Stone.
“The priority for government must be to help business succeed by making Victoria more competitive, leveraging more from our human resources to create a smarter state, ensuring we are truly international in our focus and activities, and ultimately creating a more liveable state.”
VECCI welcomes the Victorian Parliament’s passing of legislation to expand police powers to “move-on” people engaging in illegal picket line and protest activities, as it will protect the fundamental rights of business.
“The right to freely enter one’s premises is a fundamental right. People should be able to go about their business and earn a living without others preventing them from doing so or making them fear for their safety,” says VECCI Chief Executive Mark Stone.
“VECCI has been a strong and consistent advocate of the need for this legislation and we applaud the Government for securing passage through parliament,” says Mr Stone.
The legislation grants Victoria Police the power to issue move-on orders where a person is: - impeding lawful access to a business premises; or - obstructing others or traffic; or - causing a reasonable fear of violence.
“It is fundamental that clients, customers and suppliers are able to freely enter and exit business premises and that private property is protected,” says Mr Stone.
“A number of Victorian businesses have been subjected to illegal picket line activities and protests in recent years including the CBD blockade of Grocon’s Myer Emporium project. More recently, traffic has been affected by the East-West link protesters.
“There is no place for a vocal minority who do not respect the rights of others to engage in lawful work and business activity, so we welcome this action to ensure the rights of businesses are protected and that major projects are able to proceed.”
COMMENT on the Station Precinct Engagement Program by the Victorian Government by VECCI Chief Executive Mark Stone:
- VECCI supports the State Government’s enabling of under-utilised government land to be used more effectively to benefit local communities and the Victorian economy.
- The resulting mix of housing, retail, commercial and public space from this initiative provides new opportunities for local communities, and Victoria will benefit from the estimated $1 billion in direct investment.
- The expectation that the project will create more than 3,000 direct project delivery jobs, 5,000 indirect jobs through construction and 800 full-time jobs after completion is welcomed.
- It’s very important proceeds from this release are recycled and invested in new infrastructure projects that help drive productivity and business activity and support Victoria’s liveability.
- VECCI urges the State Government to continue exploring innovative ways of funding new infrastructure.
The Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VECCI) is the peak body for employers in Victoria, informing and servicing more than 15,000 members, customers and clients around the state.
including the Paid Parental Leave Amendment Bill 2014 which was re-introduced today.
ARA Executive Director Russell Zimmerman said it is now more important than ever for the Federal Opposition to also support business and back the abolition of the ‘pay-clerk’ burden from the paid parental leave scheme along with other reductions in compliance burden.
“Red tape and over compliance are major issues for business owners. The Federal Government is trying to remove this burden from all businesses but the Opposition is yet to show their support - which comes at a severe cost to business.
“The current system is overly complex and burdens business with having to carry the costs of changing their payroll systems and the additional paperwork. We are calling on all parties to put politics to one side and focus on making life a little easier for business owners, in turn helping business and the economy to grow and increasing employment opportunities.
“Under the Federal Government’s plan to remove the ‘pay-clerk’ burden, businesses of all sizes would be relieved of the red-tape burden of acting as the ‘pay-clerk’ for the paid parental leave scheme unless the employer and employee both ‘opt in’ to having the employer administer payments.
“The ARA believes the Abbott Government’s intention to return the administrative burden back to the government is the right approach. We encourage the Opposition to stop playing politics on this issue and provide the support required for retailers to get on with the job of doing business,” Mr Zimmerman said.
Since 1903, the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) has been the peak industry body representing Australia’s $265 billion retail sector, which employs over 1.2 million people. The ARA ensures retail success by informing, protecting, advocating, educating and saving money for its 5,000 independent and national retail members throughout Australia.
THE Federal Government's announcement of cuts to red tape is a vital step towards making Victoria a better place to do business, says the state's peak employer body.
“We applaud the Government’s commitment to remove poorly designed, out-dated, overly prescriptive regulations that add to business costs,” says VECCI Chief Executive Mark Stone.
“Regulations cost the state economy an estimated $3.3 billion annually, so we need ongoing reform across all levels of government,” says Mr Stone.
Mr Stone’s comments follow the introduction of the Federal Government's Omnibus Red Tape Repeal Bill to parliament today as part of its plan to abolish more than 1000 acts and almost 10,000 regulations and cut red and green tape by $1 billion a year.
VECCI has been a consistent advocate of the need to reduce the red tape burden on Victorian business and in particular, small business.
“We are delighted that the Government has adopted our proposals that business be relieved of the burden of administering the paid parental leave scheme and superannuation payments. These were a key part of our “Too Big to Ignore” campaign for small business in the lead-up to the 2013 election,” says Mr Stone.
“We commend the Federal Government on this action and encourage both state and federal governments to press-on with their reform agendas to ensure Victoria remains competitive.”
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