Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Who said this?

Like many small business operators, I have been very disappointed by the withdrawal of Government services in country towns and, in particular, the loss of public service positions. The loss of these positions has a domino effect on country communities. If each job supports a family and each family requires the services of a chemist, a supermarket, a real estate agent and so on, the demand for these services disappears with the loss of each job. Each job in real terms can equate to the lives of five people in a community - a family. Small towns rely on every family in the town, and as any chamber of commerce would confirm, no town can afford "escape spending", let alone the contempt by governments withdrawing services in favour of larger areas. Any guesses? It was the inaugural speech of the current NSW Minister for Primary Industries and Small Business, Katrina Hodgkinson, the same one who's currently doing her bit to gut the Livestock Health and Pest Authorities, the Catchment Management Authorities and Department of Primary Industries. More to come.