Minister Barr: Supporting small business in the ACT
- Written by ACT Government
Released 25/02/2019 - Joint media release
The ACT Government’s package of tax reforms are cutting the cost of doing business in Canberra, supporting the creation of more good jobs for Canberrans.
With the abolishment of insurance tax and the raising of the payroll tax threshold to the highest in Australia, the majority of businesses in the Territory will pay less in ACT Government taxes than equivalent businesses in NSW.
The ACT Government’s tax reforms are creating a fairer and more equitable tax system in the territory, which will enable the Government to continue providing world class services in health and education. In addition to phasing out stamp duty for homebuyers, our focus during the first phase of the reforms has been to support small to medium commercial enterprises, making Canberra a more attractive place to do business.
Labor Governments create jobs, and the ACT’s strong economy is supporting the growth of our small business sector. These businesses are important to the Territory, as they create jobs outside of the Australian Public Service – making our economy more diverse and resilient.
Minister Ramsay and I will visit new Canberra business Reposit Power this morning, an innovative start-up that will benefit from the Government’s tax reforms.
Reposit Power integrates software with solar battery systems to build virtual power plants that are a clean, flexible and cost-effective alternative to traditional electricity generation.
Following a grant from the Innovation Connect program in 2012–13, Reposit Power has gone from strength to strength, now partnering with ACTEW and Solar Hub on home energy management.
Quotes attributable to Chief Executive Officer of Reposit Power, Dean Spaccavento
“Our purpose is to help the world make the right journey to better energy usage, and with support from the ACT Government’s grant programs and effective and fair taxation system we’ve tripled our revenue each year since we started up.”
“We’ve sold more than 2500 controllers now, and these can be purchased Australia wide, and our largest growth has been in the Canberra market. It’s great to know that our biggest supporters are right here in our own backyard.”
“Canberra’s innovation ecosystem has also played a key role in our development – we’ve worked with local businesses like Swell, DMA, Stripy Sock, Solarhub, ActewAGL, Evoenergy, Power Saving Centre, IT Power, Zeppelin Bend, GE and PwC Canberra to collaborate and drive our business growth.”
“Having access to Canberra’s highly skilled workforce has also been critical to our business success. We now employ 35 people, with more than half of them being ex-graduates of UC or ANU. Without these qualified and talented people, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do here in the ACT.”
- Statement ends -
Section: Andrew Barr, MLA | Gordon Ramsay, MLA | Media Releases
