Business / Local Council

Small business owners expected to make significant turnout at local body elections

14:58 pm on 7 September 2022

Photo: 123rf

Small business owners are set to show a strong turnout at this year's local body elections, but there are concerns about fading support from councils.

A survey from accounting software firm MYOB shows 93 percent of small-to-medium business owners and decision makers planned to vote this year.

It's significantly higher than the general turnout at the last election, which was just above 42-percent.

But MYOB's head of go-to-market Jo Tozer said one in three small to medium enterprises (SME's) felt local council support for small business was worse than it was three years ago.

"The key sentiments among those SME's feeling disconnected came down to engagement. For example some said that their local council had never engaged with them. Others said when they contacted local council about something, nothing seemed to get done.

"There was also a feeling that they weren't being updated on work that matters to their business," she said.

Addressing some of those issues could help improve sentiment, Tozer said.

Of the areas that SME's wanted councils to prioritise, 58 percent said roading was the most important, followed by infrastructure and wastewater management.

"While the priority areas SMEs would like to see more action around appear to be focused more on broader societal needs, the knock-on effects that investment in these areas would have on the business community will certainly be a consideration," Tozer said.

The survey also found 57 percent of small businesses disagreed with the proposed three waters reforms, while a quarter were unsure and 18 percent agreed with the reforms.