On March 20th, over 50 politicians, policymakers, philanthropists and social enterprise leaders joined us at our second social enterprise event at Parliament House, co-hosted with Social Enterprise Australia.

Special thanks to Honourable Dr Andrew Leigh MP, Assistant Minister for Competition, Charities and Treasury and Assistant Minister for Employment, for his compelling speech on why Federal Government is backing social enterprise, "economics isn't just about maximising money, it's about maximising wellness, and social enterprise gets that”.

We would also like to thank Eloise Hall, Co-founder and Managing Director of certified social enterprise Taboo Period Products and Treasurer of South Australia’s Social Enterprise Council – for sharing her thoughts on how more organisations can unlock public good through social enterprise and the impact it can create. Thank you also to Minister Vicki Ward, Victorian Minister for Employment and Victorian Minister for Prevention of Family Violence, who shared the Victorian Government’s experience with working with social enterprises.

We have also seen the release of the House of Representatives Economics Committee report "Better Competition, Better Prices” calling for social procurement and certification. This is the third major government report that backs social enterprise.

It’s fantastic to see support “to improve government procurement including a social procurement framework, starting with accreditation and procurement processes that give better access to social enterprises and SMEs”. The recommendations made in the report were unanimous across all parties and independents.

We are also continuing positive conversations with the Departments of Employment, Social Services, Finance and Treasury. We continue to hear that social enterprise and social procurement are on the agenda across government.

Australia faces social, environmental, and economic challenges that demand new responses. The social enterprise sector can help.

Momentum is growing with support from the Commonwealth to back social enterprises and we continue to advocate for a national Social Enterprise Strategy, that:

1. Endorse and fund Social Traders social enterprise certification 
2. Track social enterprise growth and outcomes using the Social Traders measurement system - the deepest social enterprise dataset in Australia
3. Implement Social Enterprise Procurement Policy 

Social enterprise and social procurement can be a long-term solution that enables our economy to be sustainable, fairer, and more equitable for all.

View our 2023/2024 pre-budget submission to learn more about the opportunity of social procurement and the importance of social enterprise certification.