Kangaroo harvesters, pastoralists win small business rebate fight

Today, (Friday, June 24), may be the last day to apply for the myriad of licence and other small business rebates, with the Service NSW site saying "apply by 24 June to ensure you can claim eligible fees and charges before the rebate closes on June 30".

After a year's lobbying, the then NSW Minister for Small Business Damien Tudehope wrote to the Pastoralists' Association of West Darling (PAWD) last year to advise that kangaroo harvester licences, kangaroo royalty tags and cultivation consent fees were "now included' in the schedule of eligible fees and charges. Mr Tudehope acknowledged the contribution of kangaroo harvesting to the western NSW economy.

PAWD councillor Lachlan Gall, who led the campaign with PAWD president Matt Jackson, said that "including harvester licence and royalty tag fees in the list of fees and charges eligible for the rebate" was a great outcome.

Mr Gall said though that more broadly PAWD's position is that "the cost of running the Kangaroo Management Section should be permanently underwritten by the State Government as a contribution to kangaroo management on behalf of the people of NSW."

PAWD has also called for the abandonment of minimum carcase weights for kangaroo harvesting as it would "not cost the government anything to do so and address the problem of kangaroo numbers increasing rapidly in response to the good season".

Mr Gall said the correspondence between PAWD and Minister Tudehope "extended for a little more than twelve months". "PAWD also recommended that the $75,000 minimum turnover rebate eligibility prerequisite be reduced to zero, and it subsequently was. We were very pleased that PAWD's recommendations were subsequently adopted by the Government". More information on all rebates at https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/small-business-fees-and-charges-rebate