Small Businesses

One Nation leader says she isn’t suggesting Australia get rid of taxpayer-funded parental leave entitlementsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPauline Hanson says small businesses will “fold” under the cost of providing paid parental leave, as Labor suggested the One Nation leader didn’t understand how the policy worked.It is not compulsory for employers to pay parental leave entitlements in Australia, though most businesses do provide it and employees are entitled to 12 months of unpaid leave. Continue reading...

Start-ups and testamentary trusts to receive carve-outs after criticism of Labor’s CGT changesAll of Australia’s 2.7m small businesses will receive “generous” exemptions from capital gains tax, as Anthony Albanese flagged startups and testamentary trusts would receive carve outs from the government’s contentious tax reforms.The prime minister’s announcement on Thursday follows weeks of sustained criticism from industry groups, who have labelled the move from a flat 50% CGT discount model to an inflation-linked approach as a “tax on growth”. Continue reading...

A year ago it was the hot topic, but business owners have seen there’s a limit to the president’s royal decreesIn two weeks, I’m speaking to a group of companies in the packaging industry about issues affecting their businesses this year. I’m going to discuss the economy, navigating higher costs, leveraging new tax legislation, AI and what companies are doing to find and retain workers in a volatile job market.You know what I won’t be talking about? Tariffs. Continue reading...

• A Leamington-based startup has announced its support for UK Small Business Week, a national campaign initiated by Entrepreneurs Circle to honor the impact of small businesses on local communities. • The startup has developed a specialized AI system designed to transform occupational health services, addressing long-standing challenges faced by providers globally. • This initiative highlights the intersection of technological innovation and small business growth, emphasizing how AI can streamline health services for smaller enterprises.

Greater Manchester mayor’s proposals amount to a notable criticism of Keir Starmer’s policy in the areaUK politics live – latest updatesAndy Burnham has proposed a 20% cut to business rates for pubs with many smaller, family-run enterprises taken out of paying the levy altogether, in his first major policy initiative during the Makerfield byelection.Burnham’s plans amount to a notable criticism of Keir Starmer’s policy in the area, with the Greater Manchester mayor saying: “Labour have got it wrong on small businesses.” Continue reading...

• Startup TextWeave secured $10 million in seed funding last month to leverage LLMs for generating marketing copy for small shops. • The platform addresses niche needs in content creation, demonstrating how specialized AI fixes fuel startup growth. • This funding aligns with enterprise adoption trends, where generative AI tops technology startup news for tasks like automated writing.

• On March 3, 2026, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed S. 3971, the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act, reauthorizing the SBIR and STTR programs through September 30, 2031, after their expiration on September 30, 2025. • The bill, providing over $4 billion annually in non-dilutive R&D funding, introduces enhanced foreign due diligence, application limits, strategic breakthrough funding, and carryover of FY2026 funds. • This legislation safeguards U.S. technological leadership by prioritizing small innovative firms amid global competition.