Andrew Leigh

ANDREW LEIGH MP

SHADOW ASSISTANT TREASURER

SHADOW MINISTER FOR COMPETITION

MEMBER FOR FRASER

 

ED HUSIC MP

SHADOW PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY

TO THE SHADOW TREASURER

MEMBER FOR CHIFLEY 

 

ENTREPRENEURS TO KEEP AN EYE ON ESS CHANGES

Labor will task our recently announced Treasurer’s Entrepreneurial Council with an ongoing responsibility to recommend improvements to the employee share scheme changes introduced in Parliament today.

Employee share schemes are a vital support for start-ups seeking to attract the best talent in their early days.

That is why in March 2014, Bill Shorten called on the Government to consider changes to the scheme to encourage entrepreneurs to do what they do best.

It is important that the sector has a role in ensuring the rules for these schemes match the needs of new companies.

The Treasurer’s Entrepreneurial Council will be formed by Labor in government to draw on the knowledge and experience of those who have built successful start-up businesses.

The changes introduced today go some way towards supporting start-ups in their growth phase. But they will need to be closely monitored to make sure they are doing enough to help Australian innovators achieve their potential.

As Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen recently said at the Press Club, the council will put the ideas and needs of entrepreneurs at the centre of economic policymaking. Successful start-up operators and smart innovators bring unique insights which can help us develop the jobs of the future.

The council will build on Labor’s already-strong links with Australia’s innovation community and help to develop policies designed to boost economic activity as we transition out of the mining boom.

Our ongoing conversation with local entrepreneurs has helped shape significant new plans like the StartUp Finance scheme and coding in schools initiatives announced in Bill Shorten’s Budget Reply.

Supporting today’s changes to the employee share ownership rules is just one step in Labor’s long-term plan to make Australia a leader in innovation and entrepreneurship.  

WEDNESDAY, 27 MAY 2015