Noel Dyson

BELIEVE it or not, a spate of redundancies from a number of WA companies could be the harbinger of an economic recovery.

COURIERS have been classed as employees by a recent High Court decision but are not likely to fall foul of alienation of personal services income provisions.

WESTERN Power could offer customers Internet access and even pay television if a quiet experiment in South Perth pays off.

THE meals-ready-to-eat craze has hit Perth with a vengeance, driven largely by the growing number of time-poor, cash-rich executives.

WITH increasing deregulation in the agricultural industry, farmers are starting to take a greater role in the marketing of their produce through cooperatives and alliances.

WITH little more than their trade certificates and a few dollars, two Western Australian refrigeration mechanics set out to create their own business.

MAJOR consolidating moves are tipped for two Perth accounting practices.

NEW privacy laws coming into effect on December 21 are likely to give suburban doctors a torrid time.

WA telco Pahth Telecommunications is rebuilding itself as a satellite videoconference system provider.

WHILE privacy is growing as an issue of a size likened to Y2K or the GST, many small business owners can breathe a sigh of relief.

WINNING the $2.5 billion refit contract for Australia's Collins Class submarines would be a boon for more than just the major defence contractors such as Tenix, Rayth-eon, Transfield and United Construction.

WA'S medical professionals may soon win some concessions that many businesses take for granted.

MOST manufacturers and food producers agree that one of the hardest things in their business is getting products onto supermarket shelves.One group of beverage producers have found a way around the problem, however.

A REVIEW of the controversial by-laws governing activities at the Perth Markets in Canning Vale has been completed – and now a review of the Perth Market Act of 1926 begins.

INVESTORS who bought into tax effective schemes with Australian Tax Office product rulings risk being left with the loan liability for their investment if the scheme manager goes broke.

AFTER years of working as an audio visual consultant in South-East Asia, and wanting to do things better, Phillip Jenkins decided to form a technology company.

MORE bank branches are due to close around the Perth metropolitan area in the coming six weeks.Financial Services Union assistant secretary Paul Schroder said he was aware of at least six retail branches that would close in the next six weeks.

AS they go through the books for the financial year just past, some small business owners operating groups of companies may find a nasty tax surprise.

WILL the Mandurah to Perth rail line down the Kwinana Freeway be a blight on the Swan River foreshore or a boon for the cities of Rockingham and Mandurah?

MORE than half of Perth's metropolitan rail carriages could be privately owned under a proposal being considered by the State Government.

SMALL businesses fear another “kick in the guts” from the WA Government over the Minimum Conditions of Employment Act, which is expected to come into effect later this year.

NEXT week the first export from Akzo Nobel group's Onslow Solar Salt facility will hit the high seas.

A MINOR court action between two small players in the telecommunications industry has revealed the business of laying cable beneath the streets of Perth is as complicated as the labyrinths created by the work.

FRANCHISEES be aware. There have been more amendments to the Franchising Code of Conduct, and they will come into effect on October 1.

SIX years ago WA pest exterminator Vic Toutountzis saw a threat to his industry – a ban on the main chemicals used to kill termites.

FROM humble beginnings 25 years ago as a joint venture between Ray Godley and the University of WA, data logging equipment maker Unidata has become a multinational.

AUSTRALIA'S new privacy legislation could to harm the resale value of some businesses because it might decrease the value of their databases.

SMALL business owners have to ask themselves whether or not they intend to take part in the Simplified Tax System.

A FEDERAL Government attempt to provide a consistent regulatory framework for Australia's financial services sector should be in place by October 1.

THE Australian Paralympic Committee has managed to recoup $276,000 of the more than $320,000 stolen from it by disgraced lawyer Maurice Frichot.

WITH the financial year over and the year's figures in, small business owners need to be looking at their marketing plans.

TAX minimising investment schemes, usually linked with horticultural-type projects, have emerged in the mining industry.