‘Entrepreneurial’ ventures at risk: Small businesses on the decline
An increasingly complex and costly regulatory environment is squeezing Australian small businesses, putting pressure on ambitions to boost productivity.
Think tanks and professional associations are warning that a decline in the number of small businesses in the economy is a symptom of over-regulation and could put the federal government’s productivity agenda at risk.
Research from conservative think tank the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA), shared exclusively with Capital Brief, shows a net decline in the number of small businesses in the Australian economy over the last three years.
The IPA found that the number of small businesses employing between one and 19 people fell by 33,426 to 920,999 in the post-Covid period between June 2022 and June 2025.
There has been an increase in regulation, rising energy prices and high inflation during this time, as well as an uptick in insolvencies.
