Additional Comments
Coalition members of the Committee appreciate the spirit in
which the Chair has conducted the enquiry, are grateful for the effort which so
many people have made to provide evidence and wholeheartedly support the
objective of increasing and strengthening Indigenous businesses. Still, there
are some observations and reservations that we think should be expressed.
A distinction needs to be drawn between businesses or
enterprises that are offshoots of community groups, on the one hand, and
private, for-profit businesses that are owned or operated by Aboriginal people,
on the other. Many Aboriginal business enterprises are not private businesses
at all. They’re the business arms of local councils or collectives. They’re
Indigenous versions, so to speak, of the NSW railways rather than, say, Toll
Holdings. There’s much to be said for community organizations operating such
enterprises. Nevertheless, substantial economic advancement requires, in our
view, the development of a private sector consciousness among Aboriginal
people. This will require an awareness of the need to accumulate capital and to
take risks.
There should be no reason why work currently done by private
business (especially for Indigenous communities) could not be done by Aboriginal
businesses operating on market principles. There is no iron clad law that says
Aboriginal business should be not-for-profit, community-owned or government
subsidized. Government assistance should aim to enable Aboriginal business to
operate in a normal market rather than to operate indefinitely without the need
to face ordinary business imperatives.
In that regard, Coalition members think that IBA has done
much good work but would like to see more Aboriginal businesses learning to
deal with mainstream financial organizations.
Coalition members support the recommendations that will lead
to wider awareness of Aboriginal business successes. We particularly support
the recommendations that should lead to the creation of more for-profit
businesses by Aboriginal people as sole traders, members of partnerships or as
individual shareholders (although, in respect of government procurement
requirements, we note the current limited range of Indigenous business). We
have reservations, though, about the recommendations which might restrict free
negotiations involving Aboriginal people. Running a business should not,
primarily, be about going to meetings or securing program grants. It’s about
seeing an opportunity, developing the skills, taking the risks and reaping the
rewards of providing a service to the community.
Mr Andrew Laming MP
Deputy Chair
The Hon. Tony Abbott MP
The Hon. Dr Sharman Stone MP