It feels like a depression in Australia.
Everywhere you look, shops are closing, cafes and restaurants closing, corporations are laying off staff. The economy particularly in the housing industry hit a sharp decline late in 2022. The collapse of Porter Davis Homes in Victoria, a very professional very large home builder early in 2023 was a high-profile signal that all was not well. A record number of businesses have failed over the past few years and there is little sign of things getting better. March ‘24 broke a 25-year record for insolvencies, 1131 businesses gone. “ASIC’s latest insolvency data for the nine-month period from 1 July 2023 to 31 March 2024, released today, shows an increase in the number of Australian companies failing. During the period, 7,742 companies entered external administration, a 36.2% increase on the previous corresponding nine-month period ending 31 March 2023.” - ASIC The decline is accelerating. These are not just numbers; these are personal horror stories. Every one of these numerals represent human tragedy. That CBD café, the family home as collateral, their whole world wrapped up in its success, food preparation the night before, arrival before dawn, heating up the coffee machine, laying out the sandwich display, stewing the porridge, welcoming the staff, doors open, nothing, nobody comes – lockdown, work from home, interest rates, inflation, cost increases, wage increases, the death spiral. First one then all of the valued team members, friends then family are let go. Then less food in the display, smaller cups for the coffee, quiet desperation, oh my God, the house, the kids, the marriage, the car – the bus. Identity, pride, sense of self, the ability to live one’s dream and express their perfect version of food, coffee service, gone. A life-line, “hello” – click … Businesses are not statistics, they are lives, people, families. Our opportunity to put ourselves out there, live our dreams and dream big. We can employ, lift, create, serve and in the case of demolition businesses destroy. I love small and medium businesses, I love the little success stories, I love that even the simplest things can become a service, for profit, that can grow into a property empire employing hundreds of fellow Australians. Australians have always been an industrious and entrepreneurial lot. Right now, I think the dream of starting a business, growing and giving back, is slipping through our fingers. Whether it is the COVID insanity by Government, inflation, global instability or the relentless pace of increasing interest rates, rising to tackle inflation (not driven by consumption but Government largesse and tariffs). All this falls at the feet of successive hopeless, increasingly useless Governments, Federal, State and Local.
give us a break, cut the useless spending, look at the real problems and stop grandstanding. People are hurting, businesses are failing, we need relief, or unemployment will reach levels that will boggle the mind. It is urgent. #Auspol #CostOfLivingCrisis #ALP #Labor #Liberal