Doorstop interview - COSBOA National Small Business Summit

AMANDA RISHWORTH, MINISTER FOR EMPLOYMENT AND WORKPLACE RELATIONS: Well, it's great to be here at the annual COSBOA Summit. I'm really pleased that the acting prime minister could be here, along with, of course, Skye from COSBOA, and some of our women business owners and women that work in business. We've got Mikayla, Jacqui, and Archie who are going to be sharing something very shortly. But I am very proud as Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations that we were able earlier, or late last year, to extend funding to COSBOA to support women in small business. Of course, what we know is that women are often underrepresented in small business, but this is only exacerbated when we're talking about a business, whether it's electrical trades, whether it's IT, or indeed things like finance. We know that women working in these areas are often lower, and we know that women business owners in these areas are often lower than men. We want to see more women participating in small businesses. We know that small businesses do such a great job at providing flexibility and opportunity for women, but we need to support them, and that's why I'm so pleased to have been given an update about the She Means program that COSBOA is running, and I'm really excited to hear that with the money the federal government has provided, another 120 small businesses will benefit. And shortly, you'll hear just how those things have benefited women. We want to make a difference when it comes to gender segregation. We know that that is a driver of the gender pay gap, and we want to ensure that women equally have the opportunity to thrive, whether it is in those non-traditional occupations or whether it is in small business. So I'll now hand over to our acting prime minister, and then to Skye.

RICHARD MARLES, ACTING PRIME MINISTER: Well, thank you, Amanda. It's great to be here at COSBOA's National Summit, and small business is very much the heart of Australia's economy, and She Means Business has been a really important program in promoting women in areas where women have been traditionally underrepresented, and in these three industries, finance, IT, and the electrical industry, these are three sectors where women have been underrepresented, and She Means Business has made a really big difference in terms of the companies that it's worked with, the small businesses that it has worked with, and enabling them to move forward and to grow. And today we'll hear the stories from Mikayla, Jacqui, and Archie, which are just fantastic in terms of what this funding has meant for them. And we are really pleased to see the expansion of this program from the initial pilot of 30 companies up to 120. What this is doing is providing opportunities for women to gain more qualifications. It's providing opportunities to undertake leadership training to help in the management of their businesses. It's providing opportunities to run specific events and programs which enable those businesses to grow. So we're really excited about what has been able to be achieved and what is going to be achieved going forward with the expansion of this program. We're very proud to have been able to provide the $6 million in funding, but we're also very grateful to COSBOA for managing this. And with that, let me hand over to Skye Cappuccio, the CEO of COSBOA.

SKYE CAPPUCCIO, COSBOA CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER: Thank you. Thank you, Minister. Thank you, Acting Prime Minister. We're delighted to be welcoming you both for the National Small Business Summit that COSBOA is very pleased to be hosting today here in Sydney. I too am very proud to be involved with the She Means program. She Means is a program built on the very simple concept that you can't be what you can't see. It recognises that even in 2026 we have many industries in which women are underrepresented, many of those which are in workforce shortage, where we really need people to be participating. This isn't about, and it's never been about, a lack of talent, but it's about a lack of opportunity. So the program is really directed at utilising small businesses to recognise and address some of the structural barriers that women face getting into these industries and stepping into leadership roles in these industries, and it has that really powerful effect. There's been some great stories already from the pilot program of that impact, showing to other women the impact they can have by stepping into those spaces as well. We are absolutely delighted that the government has committed to a further two years of funding to this program. The pilot program, which is now complete, showed some really powerful impacts, and we're excited to be bringing on board another 120 businesses to benefit from those impacts as well. And I'm particularly pleased that we have a number of our wonderful participants here today to share their stories. And with that, I'm very pleased to hand over to Mikayla.

MIKAYLA VAN DEYK, CAPITAL HOME ELECTRICAL: Thank you. Hello, my name is Mikayla. I work for Capital Home Electrical as one of their electricians. When I was a third-year apprentice, my tech teacher mentioned in class that this was the most women he had ever seen at once. There were three of us. What the program has provided me hasn't just been the training and resources to do my job. It has also given me the confidence and self-belief to stay in my field. I am proud to represent women in the electrical trade. Thank you.

JACQUI SHERRIFF, O'BRIEN ELECTRICAL GRANVILLE: Hi, I'm Jacqui Sherriff. I'm the general manager of the O'Brien Electrical Granville business. I've run it with my husband for the last 28 years. We're also part of a franchise network, O'Brien Electrical and Plumbing. The program has enabled us to deliver a leadership and resilience program to over 50 women who are operating small businesses within our network. It's developed connections, built capability amongst our women, and enabled them to feel more secure in their roles. Once they feel connected, have a place where they can ask questions and where they can feel supported, they're more likely to be successful in their businesses and stay in the industry. So the She Means program has had a huge benefit for us across our network, and I'm very proud to have been part of the pilot program.

ARCHANA NANTHAKUMAR, GOOD GRAINS: Good morning. Thank you for having me. My name is Archie. I am the founder of a company called Good Grains. It's a functional health food company and brand. We sit at the intersection of microbiome science, technology, and smarter ingredients to turn daily meals into nutritional solutions. Now, for me, the She Means program really gave me licence to create something that has never been done before, and that is to create the first-of-its-kind microbiome culinary experience. And I invited a series of women into my commercial kitchen, industry leaders, health professionals, tech professionals, and we rolled up our sleeves, and we chopped, and we created magic in that kitchen, where not only are these lessons applicable for everyday life, but they transcend that to our families and our communities as well. So through this, I was able to organically grow this to schools and offer this to students as bite-sized pieces of content, and that is part of our mission to support a brighter and healthier Australia. Thank you.

MARLES: Thank you, Skye. Thank you. Thank you, Archie. And with that, we might take questions today.

JOURNALIST: Acting Prime Minister, a short time ago, in the Oval Office, Donald Trump said that this was Iran's last chance to make a deal before what he said was decapitation. What do you make of those comments, and what do you think decapitation even means? 

MARLES: What we consistently called for is a de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East. Now, in calling for that, we need to see the rules of the road respected, and that means the Straits of Hormuz being opened. And we call on Iran to do that. It's utterly unacceptable that Iran has effectively closed down the Strait of Hormuz. So we need to see the Strait of Hormuz be opened. We need to see a return to normality in terms of the global fuel supply chain. But with all of that, we want to see a de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East.

JOURNALIST: Acting Prime Minister, News 24 spoke to you about the ABC's violent video skit targeting Gina Rinehart on Friday. Since then, Ms Rinehart has sent a legal letter to the ABC. The broadcaster has yet to apologise or remove the video. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is frequently talking about the need to lower the temperature. What's your take? Would this not be achieved by an apology and removing the video?

MARLES: Well, I definitely agree with the Prime Minister in terms of lowering the temperature, and I want to be clear. I've not seen the video, and I don't intend to watch it. But as it's been described to me, it's completely unacceptable. And I think we do need to think about lowering the temperature. Now, the ABC has its editorial independence. We respect that, but we do think that it is appropriate that the ABC has referred this to the ombudsman, and I'm surprised that this video is still on its site.

JOURNALIST: Are you calling for it to be removed?

MARLES: Well, I'm surprised that it's there. As the video has been described to me, it is utterly unacceptable. And I think lowering the temperature is the way we should be thinking about this. There's nothing humorous about what has been described to me as being in that video, and that it has been referred to the Ombudsman we think is appropriate. And obviously, that process will now play out. But it does surprise me that that video is still there. 

JOURNALIST: Is your position that it should be taken down? 

MARLES: As I said, I'm surprised it's still there. I mean, the ABC is referring this to the Ombudsman. In that context, that also surprises me that it's still there. But how this has been described to me in terms of the video is utterly unacceptable. We've made that really clear. 

JOURNALIST: Again, on that question, if that is alright, to Minister Rishworth, as a senior female cabinet member, what did you make of that content being broadcast?

RISHWORTH: Well, equally, I have not seen it, and it hasalso only been described to me. I just echo the words of the Acting Prime Minister that from what's been described to me, it is unacceptable. I think we do need to demonstrate respect for women, and that goes across the board. That goes across the board, no matter what your political persuasion. We need to have more respect, and I would encourage everyone to abide by that.

JOURNALIST: In the inquiry yesterday, we heard from a witness that problem gamblers were being offered booze, bonus bets, bags of coke as inducements. What's your response to that? And is the government willing to toughen the laws to ban those sorts of inducements?

MARLES: Well, certainly the evidence that was given tells an appalling story. That's really clear, and, you know, I found that evidence quite shocking. I want to make clear that, from the government's point of view, we've done more in respect of problem gambling than any government has ever done, and that includes strengthening Stop Bet, which enables people who identify as having an issue to be able to rely on that as a means of dealing with their gambling. We've also done an enormous amount in terms of trying to break the connection between gambling and sport, and also protecting children from gambling advertising. So the strongest measures that have been taken by any government in respect of this have been taken by our government. But certainly that evidence, which was given yesterday, does tell a very disturbing story and it shocked me.

JOURNALIST: Even things like, I guess, inducements like bonus bets. Quite simple, I guess, on the face of it. But they've been linked to problematic gambling and gambling harm.

MARLES: Well, again, we've looked at this issue in detail over a long period of time. There is a balance that has to be struck here, and we intend to reach that balance. But in the process, we've engaged in the tougher set of reforms in respect of gambling and gambling advertising that we've seen.

JOURNALIST: On housing, Acting Prime Minister, there are reports today that up to 34,000 first home buyers are at risk of falling into negative equity. Is that sort of, I guess, what the government intended to achieve? Is this sort of scenario something you envisaged?

MARLES: We want to see more first home buyers owning a home. That's what we're doing. There's going to be growth in housing prices. Let's be really clear about that. But what there'll be is sustainable growth, and that will enable not just somebody of my age, but our kids to have the opportunity to pursue the dream of owning a home, and what we want to see is more first home buyers in the market. The 5% deposit scheme is a means by which we've been able to achieve that, but so too are the reforms we put through in the last budget, which does provide some intergenerational equity in respect of housing prices, and we've seen housing prices grow dramatically more than wages have grown over the last two decades. Which is why housing has been placed out of reach for so many younger Australians. We need to change that, and we need to be enabling younger Australians to enjoy the same dream that we all have of owning a home, and that's what we're about. Now, that will still see growth in housing prices, but it'll be sustainable growth. 

JOURNALIST: Was a drop to this degree anticipated? The biggest plunge in almost four years, $230 billion since March, you happy with that result? 

MARLES: Well, the question that you just asked refers to the fact that over the years you do at times see housing prices go down, but over the broad sweep of time, over the time in which people would own a home, you see housing prices grow, and they will continue to grow under these reforms, but do so in a sustainable way, which enables a younger generation to enter the housing market (inaudible).

JOURNALIST: Does the government have figures to show that there's been a big increase in young people entering the market since the changes? 

MARLES: Well, what we've seen since the budget is a whole lot more first home buyers participating in auctions around Australia, and that's a really good outcome. But like this is early days, and this is a reform which will play out not only over months but over years. We are trying to create an opportunity for younger Australians to get into the housing market, and what we've done at the budget is a really important step, as the 5% deposit scheme was as well. 

JOURNALIST: And what's your plan to fix the so-called widow tax, which sees people who become widows that go through the divorce struggle to continue to be able to negatively gear? 

MARLES: Yeah, look, I mean, we've done consultation on all of this since the budget, we've made clear that there'll be a second tranche of legislation which deals with issues such as this, and this is an issue that has been, is very much on our radar, and we're consulting about, and you'll see more work from the government in respect of this. 

JOURNALIST: When will we see those changes? 

MARLES: Oh well, the Treasurer has flagged that there'll be a second tranche of legislation in respect of the tax reforms that were made during the budget. We'll work through all of that, and this particular issue that you raise is definitely in the forefront of our minds. 

MARLES: Thanks, everyone. 

END