The South Australian Business Chamber today released its Pre-Election Charter26 — a future-focused agenda to lift productivity, cut complexity, and entrench a business-friendly environment in South Australia to attract investment and talent.
With South Australia’s reputation building as a state on the move, the Charter calls on our leaders to deliver policies that capitalise on this momentum.
Chamber CEO, Andrew Kay said the Charter reflected a clear message from local businesses. “We are seeing a two-speed business economy developing in SA,” said Kay. “Not everyone is experiencing the benefits as our economy transitions and builds complexity,” he said. “We are challenging our leaders to create a sustainable platform that will support businesses of all shapes and sizes to participate and grow.”
Kay said that rising costs of doing business during an economic downturn had made survival challenging for many operators and the Charter contained initiatives to address these. “This is not about handouts, but reform and policy that make it easier to do business in South Australia,” said Kay. “It will reward businesses who are looking to grow and a government seeking to attract capital and a skilled workforce to South Australia.”
The Charter recognises the need for practical measures that work across both regional and metropolitan centres and with a clear acceptance of budget realities. It backs the needs of all businesses under three key themes:
“Charter26 is about outcomes, not wish-lists. We set a strict test: will this make it easier to start, run or grow a business in South Australia in the next term? If the answer wasn’t a clear yes, it didn’t make the cut,” Kay said.
“A strong business community is essential to South Australia’s prosperity, driving employment, innovation and investment, and raising living standards. The initiatives in Charter26 are drawn from insights from our quarterly Survey of Business Expectations, done in collaboration with William Buck, and ongoing engagement with members and are designed to position government policy as a catalyst for businesses to flourish.”
Charter26 is available on the SA Business Chamber website HERE.
