Some of the biggest businesses in Australia will trial a series of eight principles around artificial intelligence, developed as part of the Morrison Government’s AI Ethics Framework. NAB, Commonwealth Bank, Telstra, Microsoft and Flamingo AI have signed up to test the principles to ensure they deliver practical benefits and translate into real world solutions.  Minister Read More…

Virgin Australia says it will retire five ageing aircraft and reduce domestic capacity by two per cent in the first half of next year as it focuses on more profitable routes. Virgin also said it would suspend its Melbourne to Hong Kong flight from February 11, which has underperformed with recent protests in the former Read More…

The Reserve Bank of Australia has held the cash rate at a record low 0.75 per cent, while keeping the door open for future cuts if the low cost of borrowing and tax cuts fail to stimulate the economy. Having delivered a third 0.25 percentage point cut in five months at its October meeting, the Read More…

The ATO’s heavy-handed manner of dealing with small businesses that allegedly owe taxes will be overhauled under a new scheme, according to The Australian. The Australian Taxation Office debt recovery system is expected to undergo a shake-up under a new scheme. Compensation owed to small businesses and taxpayers who have been wrongly or unfairly pursued Read More…

ASX200 companies TPG Telecom, Pro Medicus, NRW Holdings, Silver Lake Resources, Hub24 and Speedcast still don’t have a single woman on their board of directors. The percentage of women on the boards of Australia’s largest companies is falling rather than rising, with six ASX200 companies still operating with all-male boards. Women made up 29.5 per Read More…

Prushka Fast Debt Recovery, one of Australia’s largest debt recovery agencies, has released new data that shows there has been a slight decrease in company wind-up figures since the previous quarter (Apr-Jun), suggesting a more positive outlook on the horizon for Australian small businesses. The data is sourced from court records, and it reveals that Read More…

Liberal senator Hollie Hughes has launched a ‘Go Country for Christmas’ campaign to support drought-stricken regions. “We don’t need to buy from the usual suspects,” Senator Hughes said on Friday. “These businesses mainly exist because of the agriculture around them and when drought is devastating the land, we need to think laterally about other ways Read More…

The Victorian Small Business Commission’s (VSBC) Annual Report 2019 reveals a record 2,074 small businesses sought help in resolving their business disputes. The main issues causing disputes were: 1. Retail leases 2. Money that wasn’t paid 3. Understanding rights and responsibilities when it comes to contracts 4. The quality of goods and services 5. Goods Read More…

The RBA cut the cash rate to 0.75 per cent after board members failed to see any stimulatory effects from government tax cuts and its two previous reductions. The Reserve Bank’s decision to cut the cash rate to a fresh record low 0.75 per cent this month came after it failed to see stimulatory effects Read More…

The latest case of CFMMEU (The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union) bullying reinforces the need for Parliament to pass the ‘Ensuring Integrity’ laws. “This is the fifth judgment handed down in the last four weeks where the CFMMEU has bullied small businesses to either sign union deals, or to force workers to join Read More…

The Australian Tax Office will visit around 300 small businesses on Hobart’s eastern shore as part of a national crackdown on the “black economy”. The sting comes after public tip-offs about companies paying wages in cash and off the books, not reporting all their sales, or not providing invoices.  “Our intelligence also suggests that some Read More…

The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Kate Carnell, has today announced an inquiry into the insolvency system, to investigate if current insolvency practices achieve the best possible outcome for small and family businesses in financial trouble. This inquiry into insolvency aims to help more Australian businesses survive when they go into administration as Read More…

The Reserve Bank of Australia has cut the cash rate to a new record low of 0.75 per cent, reducing the cost of borrowing for the third time in five months. The market had largely priced in Tuesday’s 0.25 percentage point cut, despite lingering doubts over whether the move will deliver the desired lift in Read More…

Facebook users will no longer be able to see the number of likes, reactions and video views on other’s posts in a world-first trial. Similar to Instagram’s test that was rolled out in July this year, where the platform removed likes, Facebook is following suit. All likes on posts will now be private and only visible Read More…

Accountants are losing ground when it comes to SMEs nominating their most trusted business advisor, according to a national survey of more than 1000 Australian businesses. The September 2019 SME Growth Index found that only one in 20 business owners named their accountant as their most trusted business advisor. In 2017 when the question was Read More…