Tuesday, 29 July 2025

Regional businesses

Annabelle CLEELAND (Euroa) (19:04): (1213) My adjournment his evening is for the Minister for Economic Growth and Jobs and Minister for Regional Development, and the action I seek is for the minister to urgently convene a regional business roundtable in the Euroa electorate to listen directly to local manufacturers and small business operators to address the devastating impact the Victorian Labor government’s regulatory burden is having on regional enterprise.

Right now, the numbers tell a damning story: Victoria recorded a staggering 48 per cent increase in business insolvency last financial year, with a total increase of nearly 100 per cent in the past two years. We have seen more than 4200 Victorian businesses close their doors in just the past year alone. This is the worst performance of any mainland state, and our regional communities are bearing the brunt. Separate data from the ABS confirms what we see on the ground in communities like Heathcote, Benalla, Seymour, Kilmore and Broadford. There are fewer businesses, fewer opportunities and more families under enormous financial pressure.

Over recent weeks I have sat down with manufacturers, farmers, retailers, pubs, service providers and wineries, businesses that have served our communities for decades. Their message is clear: the system is broken and there is absolutely no support. Skyrocketing energy bills, unaffordable insurance, out-of-control WorkCover premiums, layers and layers of red tape, inconsistent regulation and a punishing tax burden are making it harder and harder to keep the lights on, both literally and financially. These are not faceless corporations, they are family-run businesses who employ apprentices, sponsor the town’s netball team and power our local economies – and they are being punished to the brink. The closure of ForestOne’s sawmill and particle board operations in Benalla is something that will impact hundreds of local jobs and is not isolated. It is part of a broader pattern of neglect, worsened by Labor’s reckless policies, which are driving up prices and driving out investment. These same burdens are seeing retailers, cafes, pubs and factories close right across our region, and we have seen banks close in Euroa, Stanhope and Seymour and services continue to disappear. In towns like Heathcote, Kilmore and Seymour I have spoken with business owners who are seriously weighing up whether to shut down or move interstate entirely; that is how bad it has become.

Unreliable electricity has quickly become one of the biggest risks facing regional businesses, particularly due to Labor’s poorly managed energy transition. The government’s failure to provide adequate backup power, maintain our infrastructure and ensure our energy security is leaving many, many country towns exposed to regular blackouts, costly disruptions and rising power bills; while forcing a transition away from gas, the government has forgotten to ensure our regions have reliable energy.

My message to the minister is: regional businesses are out of time. They need a government that listens and leads and does not hide behind bureaucracy and press releases. I call on the minister to visit our region, host a business round table and support our regional communities.