Business benefits from better Government bill paying

14/9/05 Western Australian businesses are benefiting from the State Government's commitment to speed up payment of its bills.

14/9/05
Western Australian businesses are benefiting from the State Government's commitment to speed up payment of its bills.
Small Business Minister John D'Orazio said that in 2001 the Gallop Government had reversed the previous government's policy of withholding payments for up to eight weeks.
Mr D'Orazio told Parliament today that information provided by 58 Government agencies indicated that up to 80 per cent of bills were being paid within 30 days of invoices being received.
However, he said, not all payments met the Government's requirements and he would ask the Premier to remind agencies of their responsibilities.
"Prompt payment makes a significant difference, especially to small businesses, for which these payments may be an important part of their income," the Minister said.
"Under the previous government, agencies were instructed to make payments within 30 days from the end of the month in which the invoice was received.
"This approach might have earned the State Government a significant amount of interest, but only by imposing added costs on thousands of Western Australian small businesses.
"By improving its bill payment performance, the Government is helping business create new jobs and opportunities for Western Australians."
Mr D'Orazio said that in June 2004 the Government owed $180million to 33,233 creditors. Of this:

  • $141 million, or about 78 per cent, of the value owed to creditors was inside the 30-day limit and 91 per cent was inside 60 days;
  • more than 70 per cent of creditors had accounts inside the 30-day limit;
  • 19 of the agencies surveyed had no creditors outside the 30-day limit
  • comparable figures for June 2003 showed about 80 per cent of the value owed to creditors was inside the 30-day limit.
"These figures are generally positive, but they should also provide a wake-up call to those agencies which are tardy in paying their bills," Mr D'Orazio said.
"Of course, there will always be some accounts which take more than 30 days to settle, because invoices are presented late, or are incorrectly addressed, accounts are in dispute, or grant payments are awaiting confirmation of milestones."
Minister's office: 9213 7150