Today in Invercargill I hosted National’s Small Business spokesperson Jacqui Dean for the latest round of her ‘Red Tape Roadshow’ to hear from locals who are being hindered by onerous regulation, Invercargill MP Sarah Dowie says.

“At a time when the future of SIT is up-in-the-air, it seems that the Government is again missing in action.

“Chief among the concerns raised were those from builders, who are frustrated with the current consenting process. While Councils have 20 days to process each consent, the high number of Requests for Further Information (RFI) means that the process is often dragged out. This stifles growth and expansion in our city with respect to the provision of infrastructure and services.

“The longer it takes to get through the Council, the longer it takes for invoices to get out. And this makes paying staff and suppliers that much harder.

“National cracked down on excessive bureaucracy when last in Government and the Labour-led Government needs to follow suit and iron out the consent application process.

“Small businesses are the pillars of our local economy and compliance needs to be simple and easy to use. Southlanders are a self-sufficient bunch and those who take risks and build their business shouldn’t be discouraged.

“National has a proven track record as competent managers of the economy. We back our businesses to compete on the world stage and we’ll help by making sure that compliance is simple and easy to use.”

© Scoop Media