After a recent roundtable with local businesses in a Narellan restaurant, Angus Taylor emerged to tell the waiting media that there was an “assault’’ on aspiration under way.
The leader of the Liberal Party, and federal member for Hume, said small business was doing it “incredibly tough’’.
“It’s great to be here in Narellan in South Western Sydney in my own electorate talking to small businesses from across the region,’’ he said before taking questions from the media.
“Small businesses that are doing it incredibly tough right now, who are struggling to pay their energy bills, who are struggling to pay their broader bills, who are seeing customers who can’t afford to buy what they were able to buy a couple of years ago, to see customers who are under mortgage stress, to see their cost of doing business continuing to rise, seeing extra regulation just making life harder for them,’’ Mr Taylor said.
“Regulators with thousands of people working for them, up against small businesses with a few people working for them.
“What I heard [in the roundtable inside] was what I’m hearing all over the country: there is an assault on aspiration going on in this country, which is absolutely unacceptable and is a war against the essence of our nation.
“If we want rising incomes in this country, if we want people who can get ahead, we want more good employment in this country, we need more small businesses with confidence investing in their future, in the community’s future, and in the nation’s future – and we are seeing the exact opposite right now under this Government,’’ he said.
“There’s been a complete and utter loss of confidence – and I heard that, just a moment ago, from across the board – the hospitality industry, the building industry, the health services industry, you name it.
“People are feeling the pain of a government that simply doesn’t get it,’’ Mr Taylor said.
