Media release – Jane Howlett, Minister for Hospitality and Small Business, 6 February 2025

Grants bolster Tasmania’s small businesses

Builders, distillers, cafes and a swim school are among the businesses to benefit from a round of Tasmanian Government grants aimed at supporting small business.

Minister for Hospitality and Small Business, Jane Howlett, said the Enabling Small Business Grant program was very popular, with the grants applications fulfilled within 24 hours of opening.

“The $1 million Enabling Small Business Grants program provided up to $10,000 to eligible businesses for capital purchases,” Minister Howlett said.

“This includes things such as new technology, small-scale manufacturing equipment, computers or electronic payments terminals.

“The successful applicants were required to contribute at least 30 per cent towards the total capital purchase cost.”

Minister Howlett said key to the Tasmanian Government’s 2030 Strong Plan for Tasmania’s Future was supporting our State’s small businesses, who are the backbone of the economy.

“These grants highlight the benefits of 2026 Small Business Growth Strategy and are producing real and tangible outcomes for small businesses across Tasmania,” the Minister said.

Successful recipients from round two of the Enabling Small Business Grant program can be found on the Business Tasmania website.

Media release – Madeleine Ogilvie, Minister for the Environment, 1 February 2025

A Deliver-E of clean and green goodness

Small businesses will be able to apply for grants of $2,500 to purchase a cargo e-bike and $20,000 to purchase an electric delivery van.

Capped at $25,000 per business, and with $300,000 in funding available, the Deliver-E program aims to reduce emissions by replacing both the last-mile and short-to-medium delivery of goods with electric alternatives.

Minister for the Environment, Madeleine Ogilvie, has encouraged Tasmanian businesses to make the switch to clean and green ‘Deliver-E’s’.

“Everyone stands to benefit through more electric vehicles in our streets.

“More EVs mean less emissions and less noise pollution, particularly in urban areas. Cargo e-bikes also promote active transport, which carries several health and wellbeing benefits.

“Environmentally conscious businesses strengthen Tasmania’s brand as a clean and green place to do business, in line with our 2030 Strong Plan for Tasmania’s Future,” Minister Ogilvie said.

Welcoming the grants were Jon Ettershank, Tasmanian Director of the Australian Electric Vehicle Association (AEVA), and Ahmet Bektas, Owner of Teros, a Hobart green lifestyle shop selling e-bikes.

“While EVs are cheaper to maintain and operate than hybrid and internal combustion vehicles, many have a higher entry cost. These grants will reduce that financial barrier, accelerating their adoption in Tasmania,” AEVA Tasmanian Director Jon Ettershank said.

“Deliver-E will encourage more small businesses to make the switch to clean and green deliveries, making our urban areas cleaner, quieter, and less congested,” Teros Owner Ahmet Bektas said.

Australia’s national body for the EV industry also welcomed the program.

“Small businesses make up the bulk of last-mile deliveries and we know they need a helping hand at this stage of the EV transition,” Electric Vehicle Council Senior Policy Officer Cameron Rimington said.

Deliver-E follows an earlier e-Mobility rebate, which was available only to individuals and resulted in $198,081 in grants being delivered to 501 people to purchase 56 e-scooters, 414 e-bikes, and 31 cargo e-bikes.

Applications for Deliver-E will open on February 6 on the website of ReCFIT located at: https://recfit.tas.gov.au/grants_programs.

Media release – Josh Willie MP, Shadow Treasurer, 6 February 2025

Where’s the money coming from?

Premier Rockliff and Treasurer Barnett need to answer one critical question: how are they going to pay for all their debt funded spending?

After spruiking more grant funding today, the Liberals have demonstrated they are determined to ignore the warnings and continue plunging Tasmania further into a budget crisis.

Funding for small businesses is a nice idea, but Tasmania has record deficit and debt, no pathway to a cash surplus and their poor budget management is hurting confidence.

Earlier this month, Moody’s downgraded Tasmania’s credit outlook to negative from stable, citing “a weakening in the state’s governance” and a rising debt burden.

More debt-funded handouts from a desperate minority Liberal government spiralling deeper into debt by the day is going to make the problem worse.

Premier Rockliff and Treasurer Barnett need to focus on the fundamentals of good governance and strong budget management, which helps support confidence in the Tasmanian economy but instead they are racking up a crippling credit card bill for future generations.

Media release – Jane Howlett, Minister for Hospitality and Small Business, 7 February 2025

Attacks on hardworking small businesses are outrageous

If yesterday’s attack on Tasmania’s tourism industry wasn’t enough, Labor has doubled down attacking our 42,000 hardworking small businesses owners.

Labor have made it abundantly clear that they are no friend of small business, calling critical investment in their success ‘reckless’.

Minister for Hospitality and Small Business, Jane Howlett, said Tasmania’s business owners are optimistic about the future and attacks on them by Labor are outrageous.

“Once again, Labor are showing their utter incompetence in understanding how the economy works,” Minister Howlett said.

“Small business keeps our economy strong, and employs thousands of Tasmanians, allowing families to pay their mortgages and put food on the table.

“Whether it’s builders, daycare providers, accommodation, food outlets, restaurants, retailers, tourism operators, they are the lifeblood of our economy, particularly our regional communities.

“More than 95 per cent of the workforce in Tasmania is working in small businesses.

“Those business owners have told us that there are a range of ways we can support them and we’ve listened to that and responded.

“The Tasmanian Government has developed a strategy with key peak bodies that is actively providing assistance and support those in the small business sector through a range of measures including mentoring programs, assistance to take up new technologies, skills training and trade representation.

“This is producing real and tangible outcomes for small businesses, which means they can grow their businesses in the way they choose.

“That equals more jobs and a stronger economy.

“Under Labor – it’s clear small business would be abandoned.

“Labor are anti jobs and anti economic growth.

“If Dean Winter actually cares about jobs he will send his Shadow Treasurer out to apologise to Tasmania’s 42,000 small business owners.”

Media release – Josh Willie MP, Shadow Treasurer, 7 February 2025

Rockliff’s addiction to reckless spending must stop

Premier Jeremy Rockliff is digging a huge debt-hole for Tasmania with his addiction to reckless spending showing no signs of letting up.

Yesterday, the Liberals dished out $1 million of taxpayer money to small businesses while the state’s finances sit in record debt and deficit.

While small business grants are a nice idea, handing out Tasmanian taxpayer money with no plan to pay for it is a sign of a reckless government with no regard for Tasmania’s future.

Earlier this month, Moody’s downgraded Tasmania’s credit outlook to negative from stable, citing “a weakening in the state’s governance” and a rising debt burden.

After 10 plus years of Liberal mismanagement, Tasmania’s finances are in need of desperate repair.

More debt-funded handouts from a desperate minority Liberal government spiralling deeper into debt by the day is going to make the problem worse.

Premier Rockliff needs to explain why he thinks this reckless spending is appropriate, what this latest round of debt-funded taxpayer money went towards, and how he’s going to pay for it.

Media release – Tasmanian Small Business Council, 7 February 2025

Labor gets it wrong on small business support

The Tasmanian Small Business Council has expressed astonishment at the criticism by the Shadow Treasurer, Josh Willie, of $1 million in state government grants to support small business.

“Running a small business takes guts, hard-work and determination, I am frankly gobsmacked that Mr Willie would begrudge some of them a small amount of support for practical things like computers and electronic payments terminals”, said Robert Mallett CEO of the TSBC.

“Mr Willie’s statements are completely at odds with those of his leader, Mr Winter who has professed to be pro-business and pro-jobs.

“I invite Mr Willie to personally visit each of these small businesses who received a grant, and explain why he doesn’t think they deserve this support – a number of which I note are in his electorate of Clark.”

“Every business has had to add at least another 30% to the grant funding which has gone to support new business infrastructure into these myriad enterprises.

The grant process was a well managed, transparent and fair process. The second of such rounds supporting the Small Business Growth Strategy and the broad Tasmanian small business sector.

“This level of investment into the state’s small businesses and the Tasmanian economy overall will return itself in spades’, Mr Mallett said.