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Queensland's 400,000 businesses face New Year red tape nightmare

The Bligh Labor government is set to tie Queensland’s 400,000 businesses a more costly and confusing red tape in the form of onerous new Workplace, Health & Safety regulations from January 1. This tired, 20-year Labor government has rushed to sign-up for the new regulations – covering no less than 400 pages – with little or no consultation with business.In less than four weeks and with Christmas-New Year to boot, Queensland’s 400,000 businesses will be forced to comply with more red tape, more paperwork and a whole raft of new regulations that few have heard of and fewer understand.

The LNP has called on the Bligh government and the Minister responsible, Cameron Dick, to delay the introduction beyond January 1, to allow for full and proper consultation and more importantly, education.

LNP Shadow Minister for Industrial Relations & Employment Skills, Mr Ted Malone, Mr Malone says his office has been inundated by concerned small business owners and managers who said there’d been little consultation and that page after page of the new regulations were totally confusing.

“ The government claims to have held a few meetings and printed 1,000 (one thousand) brochures, but that’s hardly going to help tens of thousands of smaller and family-run businesses that will be held responsible even though the government says they’ll be lenient during a transition period – whatever that means. 

“There’s no clarity, no understanding from this long-term Labor government.

“Who in Labor’s ranks has run a small business or had to comply with any of the government’s crazy level of red tape. Who in Labor’s ranks has employed staff, paid wages and filled out monthly BAS returns?"

The Bligh Labor government has rushed ahead and signed-up for new national laws for the incentive payments from Canberra, without bothering to check with Queensland businesses on the overlap of codes and regulations.

It’s a nightmare for our already struggling business sector, but no one in Labor’s ranks understands or cares. 

The LNP CanDo team will cut waste to support our business sector.