The federal government’s review into the Payment Times Reporting Act is a crucial opportunity to improve outcomes for small businesses, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Andrew McKellar said.

“Australia’s 2.5 million small businesses are the engine room of the economy and sit at the heart of our local communities. Small businesses need the certainty of being paid promptly in order to plan, grow, and create jobs for more Australians.

“This review will support the important objective of ensuring small suppliers get paid on time, every time.

“Payment times to Australian small businesses have reduced since the implementation of the Payment Times Reporting Scheme. But there is still much more work to be done, as Australian payment times continue to lag behind international benchmarks and are still exceeding the 30-day limit.

“Late payments can cause extreme financial stress to those small businesses operators heavily reliant on cash flow.

“It’s crucial that the payments reporting system works as efficiently as possible to maximise compliance and give small suppliers greater certainty.