Minister for Small Business Kelly O’Dwyer said that the Ombudsman role will provide value to the small business and family enterprise community and help with the government’s aim of making it easier to do business in Australia.
The Minister for Small Business and Assistant Treasurer, the Hon Kelly O’Dwyer, has launched the Office of the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman.
Ms Kate Carnell AO was appointed to the Ombudsman role. Ms Carnell AO brings extensive experience and knowledge to the position, including 15 years of running her own small business, and more recently as CEO of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman will be:
- a Commonwealth advocate for small businesses and family enterprises,
- a concierge for dispute resolution to allow businesses to resolve disputes without resorting to costly litigation, and
- a contributor to the development of small business Commonwealth laws and regulations.
Minister O’Dwyer said that the Ombudsman role will provide value to the small business and family enterprise community and help with the government’s aim of making it easier to do business in Australia.
With over two million small businesses generating around a third of Australia’s economic output, the setting-up of a dedicated Ombudsman for the sector is long overdue, and will hopefully give SMEs and family businesses a stronger voice in the corridors of power and a more robust defense of their interests when they collide with those of the country’s dominant retail, financial and industrial companies.
Ms Carnell says that she is hoping to be a very strong advocate for the sector and to work closely with industry associations and small business and family enterprise generally.
‘I would like to make sure that small business and family enterprise have a very strong voice inside all parts of government to ensure that regulations and laws are business friendly,’ she said of her new role.
As well as her experience as a small-business owner and most recent position at the ACCI, Ms Carnell is the former CEO of beyondblue, the Australian Food and Grocery Council and the Australian General Practice Network. She is a pharmacist by profession and was the first female to become the National Vice-President of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia.
