National Farmers’ Federation Chief Executive, Tony Mahar, said today,

We welcome the Australian Government’s announcement of the Small Business Energy Incentive, but reiterate our calls to extend the Instant Asset Write-Off.

The new policy is a step in the right direction to support farmers and small businesses invest in their businesses and reduce their emissions and energy costs.

Australian farmers are key adopters of new renewable energy, so this policy offers great opportunity to support farmers who are leading the economy in the transition to net-zero emissions.

However, the detail is lacking on what exactly the policy covers. It would be a missed opportunity if this policy doesn’t cover new renewable energy generation like solar panels.

While this new policy encourages new adoption of electrification and energy efficiency, the government needs to honour the good faith investments Australian farmers have made under existing tax incentives.

We call on Treasurer Jim Chalmers to extend the Instant Asset Write-Off for farmers and small businesses who have invested in good faith, but are set to miss out on this tax benefit because global supply chain disruptions means goods won’t be delivered before the June 30 deadline.

It would be completely short-sighted to cut off those farmers. Instead, the government could add the cherry on top of today’s good news by simply extending this scheme.