Small Business Policy
Protect & Prosper New Zealand believes small businesses are the backbone of our economy. They create jobs, support families, serve local communities and keep our towns and cities active.
Protecting and Supporting Businesses
PPNZ supports practical policies that help businesses grow, manage costs, access finance, attract workers and reduce unnecessary legal and compliance pressure.
Promote Local Business
Support and promote businesses across New Zealand so local communities, town centres and regional economies remain strong.
Protect Commercial Areas
Protect the commercial rates base and maintain practical infrastructure, including parking access where it supports retail and local businesses.
Improve Business Finance
Make business loan processes easier and more practical so struggling businesses can manage cashflow and continue operating.
Recognise Economic Contribution
Recognise the important role businesses play in employment, innovation, exports, tourism and the wider New Zealand economy.
Support Staffing Needs
Listen to industry experts, plan workforce requirements in advance and support fast-track skilled visa processing where genuine shortages exist.
Reduce Compliance Pressure
Simplify contracts, reduce unnecessary legal costs and improve mediation options so disputes can be resolved faster and more affordably.
Helping Hand for Businesses
- Recognise the significant economic input of small and medium businesses.
- Ease the business loan process to help the cashflow of struggling businesses.
- Develop policies to help businesses affected by staffing shortages, planning issues and transport disruption.
- Incentivise banks to invest in productive businesses rather than focusing mainly on real property lending.
- Encourage workers to return to city centres to support retail, food outlets, tourism and entertainment.
- Bring in essential workers such as doctors, nurses, medical technicians, construction workers, tradespeople, horticulture workers and farming workers where there is real demand.
- Boost exports to strengthen New Zealand’s foreign reserves and improve national economic resilience.
- Provide support for businesses to attend international trade fairs and access new export markets.
Primary Industry Support
- Increase promotion and marketing of New Zealand’s primary industries.
- Identify new market opportunities for farmers, growers and food producers.
- Review and document the damage caused to farming businesses by the Covid-19 period and recent anti-farming policies.
- Support primary industries to attend international trade fairs and capture new export markets.
Stronger Primary Industries
New Zealand’s primary industries are essential to jobs, exports and food security. PPNZ supports farmers, growers and producers with practical policies that help them compete locally and internationally.
Legal Cost and Compliance
- Reduce unnecessary compliance and legal pressure on businesses already struggling with recession and rising costs.
- Encourage simplified contracts written in clear, plain language so obligations are easier to understand.
- Protect small businesses from losses caused when larger companies or contractors collapse without safeguarding payment obligations.
- Review impractical employment laws that discourage employers from hiring staff.
- Improve mediation options for small employment disputes so both employers and employees can access fair outcomes at lower cost.
- Allow businesses greater ability to represent themselves in suitable legal matters to reduce lawyer costs.
- Develop practical mediation rules so fewer employment and commercial disputes end up in court.
- Review the Disputes Tribunal limit so more business disputes can be resolved affordably and efficiently.
Support Small Business Growth
Join PPNZ and support practical policies that help local businesses, workers, farmers and exporters build a stronger New Zealand economy.
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