The Australian Retailers Association (ARA) and the National Retail Association (NRA) today congratulated the members of the re-elected Labor Government ministry and welcomed the opportunity to work with Federal Cabinet to strengthen Australia’s economy.
ARA CEO Chris Rodwell said: “The need for productivity reform is urgent. We intend to forge the strongest possible co-operation with the government, especially Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, and Assistant Minister for Competition, Andrew Leigh, in this area in its second term. The fortunes of so many retailers, large and small, hinge on relieving the regulatory and cost burden they face, allowing them to unlock higher growth. This is an issue shared by many businesses, across many sectors of the Australian economy.
“The ultimate burden, however, is borne by all Australians as poor productivity undermines our aspirations to raise living standards. Retail is the single largest private sector employer in the country, providing jobs to more than 1.4 million Australians – making real inroads in these areas matters. This is why the Government can expect our fullest engagement on these priority issues.
“The US tariff war provides further impetus to this work. While the US has walked back the worst elements of its policy, the rewriting of global trading rules will impact our economy. Our members, especially smaller retailers, cite that significant price and supply chain impacts will occur over the coming months due to this volatile situation.
“We accept there are limitations on what the Federal Government can do in global negotiations, however local measures to help reduce some of the cost and administrative burden created by red tape and regulatory complexity will go a long way in offsetting the impact. These are key areas holding business back from productive, competitive and profitable operations,” he said.
Mr Rodwell said the ARA and NRA are committed to helping accelerate Labor’s commitments to small business support, workforce development and wellbeing, energy affordability, cyber security and digital & artificial intelligence.
“We welcome the appointment of Amanda Rishworth as Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations. We look forward to engaging with her on practical reforms that reduce complexity and balance worker protections while supporting Australian retailers to compete with a surge of low-cost international competition,” he said.
“We also congratulate Dr Anne Aly on her appointment as Minister for Small Business. Small retailers sit at the heart of our communities and continue to grapple with spiraling operating costs. We look forward to working with the Minister to help support small business resilience and productivity gains.”
“Ultimately, the big economic test for this second term is to deliver overdue productivity reform. It is an agenda that will define our future living standards. We can do this through the National Competition Policy reform and the strategic review of Australia’s R&D. However, the agenda needs to go further, encompassing much overdue tax reform. The ARA and NRA stand ready to work with the Government, Opposition, crossbenches, business and community groups to effect genuine change,” he added.
