Commonwealth, state and territory Small Business Ministers met in the Northern Rivers on Friday 28 November, for the seventh Small Business Ministers' Meeting since it was re‑established in 2022.
NSW Minister for Small Business, the Hon Janelle Saffin MP, hosted the meeting, which was chaired by the Hon Dr Anne Aly MP, Commonwealth Minister for Small Business. Ministers discussed ways to advance economic reform priorities, build small business resilience and streamline small business interactions with government. They also provided updates on small business issues and successes in their jurisdictions.
Advancing economic reform priorities remains a key priority for ministers, following the Commonwealth Economic Reform Roundtable held in August 2025. Ministers agreed to work together to look at red tape across jurisdictions, focussing on common pain points and will report back on the progress of this work at the next meeting in 2026. Ministers also agreed it will be important to ensure intelligence from this work is provided back to the relevant Commonwealth and state and territory regulatory reduction initiatives or portfolios to take actions forward.
Ministers shared small businesses experiences following natural disasters and business disruptions. They agreed the importance of business continuity planning and coordinated support across jurisdictions to build small business' ability to respond and adapt during these difficult times and continue to operate their businesses. Ministers agreed to share lessons learned and best practice in disaster resilience and recovery.
Ministers agreed the importance of ensuring small businesses get the right information, at the right time, from governments. The meeting included a showcase of the tools and resources available to businesses from different governments, particularly through business.gov.au. Ministers agreed to undertake a stocktake of government resources available to small businesses with a focus on how small businesses access these resources and conversely how these resources are marketed and made available to small businesses.
Ministers will meet again in mid‑2026, to continue to progress actions under the National Small Business Strategy and progress their commitment to improving the operating environment for Australia's 2.7 million small businesses.
