Noel Dyson

A WA business group has raised the possibility of legal action against the State Government if its proposed industrial relations legislation causes businesses to fail.

COMPANIES operating through group structures have been given an extra year to come to terms with the Federal Government’s tax consolidation regime.

GREEN electricity producers are on the cusp of gaining effective access to WA’s main power grid.

A LEGISLATIVE Council motion to block Government plans to increase court fees has been foiled.The WA Greens sided with Labor upper house members to undermine the Opposition’s motion, even though they had agreed to side with the Liberals.

WA is the lowest taxing State in Australia, or the fourth highest, depending on which measure is used.If based on a percentage of Gross State Product then WA is the lowest taxing State in the land.

A NEW magazine set for launch in Perth later this year will be aimed at helping unemployed and homeless people find some social and financial determination.

CLAIMS have emerged that petty political delaying tactics were behind the absence of Liberal Legislative Council members when the Govern-ment pushed its controversial industrial relations legislation a step closer to becoming law.

ANGER is mounting over the lack of transparency and the powers of WA’s tax collector, the Office of State Revenue, and the lack of cost-effective recourse to adverse tax assessments.

SINCE the early 1990s WA has been lauded as having the most competitive industrial relations system in the land, however that is soon about to change.

THE jury is out as to whether mystery shopping offers any benefit to small retailers.Most traditional market research companies offer some form of mystery shopper service.

LISTED Australian companies will be forced to change their auditors every seven years if Australian Securities and Investments Com-mission chairman David Knott has his way.

PROFESSIONALS, in particular lawyers and doctors, are going to come under increasing scrutiny from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

THE ABC will become the latest broadcaster to embrace business television when it launches Business Breakfast on June 3 at 6.30am.Ex-Channel 9 reporter and financial writer Emma Alberici will host the weekday business show.

WA licensed insurer St Andrew’s, in partnership with Royal & SunAlliance, has won the contract to provide a range of insurance services to IMB.

WA will still lose out to Queensland in the heavy vehicle stakes, even though the WA Government has cut stamp duty on truck registrations from 5 per cent to 3 per cent.

THE tide appears to be turning for WA with more multinational organisations preferring to base major branch offices here and a greater number of small companies prepared to look eastwards to grow their businesses.

SIGNS of the forthcoming refurbishment of shops beneath Allendale Square are becoming apparent to city workers.At least two shops, one that had been there for many years, have left the arcade.

INDEPENDENT renewable energy generators claim Western Power’s energy access rules prevent them from competing for customers in the electricity market.

THE property market in West Perth continues to benefit from strong demand following the sale of a property owned by the City of Perth for $1.65 million.

WESTERN Power has been accused of lobbying non-Government members of the WA Parliament to prevent any moves to break it up.

SOME motor industry business owners are unhappy with plans to raise the merchant fees on the Motorcharge card by up to 60 per cent from June 5.

AFTER last September’s ‘no new taxes’ budget and a business tax review, most WA industry sectors are not hopeful of any Government help in the May 16 budget.

ASK a dozen people in the street what corporate citizen-ship means and the chances are that half of them won’t know, and the other half will give you quite differing answers.

WITH former accounting giant Andersen soon to face US justice after the collapse of energy giant Enron, second-tier firms are starting to see some opportunities arising.

BUSINESSES will have to wait until the Government releases its budget on May 16 to find out how new payroll tax rules will operate.

WORK could begin anew on 4 Bellevue Terrace next month after the site has stood idle for more than a year.

MINING has been one of the main drivers of WA’s economic success and that trend is showing little sign of abating.

A MALAGA-based manufacturer is helping motorcycle enthusiasts around the world to keep their Ducatis running.

WHILE changes to the law to allow legal firms to incorporate may not have much initial effect at the top end of the industry, it appears to hold many benefits for small practitioners.

ONE of the changes proposed in the WA Government’s Industrial Relations Reform Bill is likely to have major ramifications for mining companies.

THE City of Perth’s redevelopment of prime Swan River foreshore land looks set to harm at least one business.

CORPORATE governance, or at least the risk and compliance management side of it, is increasingly becoming a whole-of-organisation task.