Wednesday, 8 February 2023

 Natalie SULEYMAN (St Albans – Minister for Veterans, Minister for Small Business, Minister for Youth) (14:30): There is good news to tell about regional small businesses. They are critical to our regional communities and economy, and with small businesses making up one in four of the Victorian business community, the Andrews Labor government is backing our regional small businesses every step of the way. Our Small Business Bus supports small businesses across Victoria. Just last year we visited 82 businesses in the regions. These visits provide businesses with the support they need to succeed. We are also delivering grants to traders groups –

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: The member for Eildon can leave the chamber for 1 hour.

Member for Eildon withdrew from chamber.

Natalie SULEYMAN: which give experts in their communities support to deliver local solutions and opportunities.

I want to take this opportunity to thank Business Mount Alexander, who connected with over 170 people from local businesses at their Creative Connections Conference last year. Thanks to our grants we were able to fund workshops, networking events and an industry panel of experts to assist those small businesses. Initiatives like this show how the Andrews Labor government is supporting small businesses in our regions. We work hand in hand with small businesses, whether it is in the regions or in Melbourne. Let me say, the numbers speak for themselves. We had over 11,000 new small businesses opening in regional Victoria just last year – 11,000 businesses, that is right. The Andrews Labor government will always back regional Victoria’s small businesses and deliver the best outcomes.