Increasing the payroll tax threshold, improving energy affordability, accelerating the delivery of regional infrastructure and new measures to boost investment in apprenticeships and traineeships are essential to keeping NSW Number 1 and should be key inclusions in June’s State Budget.
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The strength of the Budget position provides an opportunity to build capacity, and increasing the payroll tax threshold to $1 million is one of the best ways to stimulate economic and employment growth.
Boosting investment and training to tackle the serious issue of youth unemployment is also a key focus of the Chamber’s recommendations, along with building economic capacity.
Our Workforce Skills Surveys confirm New England North West employers are experiencing acute skill shortages. However, there is a significant disconnect between what employers need and what our education and training systems are producing. Areas of focus should include community services, hospitality and infrastructure and construction, along with new measures and incentives to improve apprenticeship completion rates.
We also need to accelerate the delivery of new infrastructure in regional NSW. The Government, backed strongly by the Chamber, made the right decision to raise substantial funds through asset recycling, and we now need to ensure that these proceeds are invested in long term economic infrastructure in our cities and our regions to support current and future generations.
The Chamber has also renewed its calls for greater certainty for investment in energy exploration, production and distribution in NSW. Affordable and reliable energy supply is something all citizens and businesses should be able to rely upon. We need to reduce our emissions through affordable and sustainable measures and ensure that we don’t simply export our emissions and jobs. While budgets are often viewed through a 12 month lens, or 4 year political term, the strength of the NSW economy provides an opportunity to build capacity in both economic infrastructure and human capital. Businesses, and in particular small businesses, are an essential ingredient to building this capacity, and the implementation of these measures will build a stronger NSW.
Joe Townsend is Regional Manager - New England North West, NSW Business Chamber.