An ACT Liberal Government will grant automatic free lease renewals, cut payroll tax by 14 per cent, abolish the three-cents-a-litre fuel tax and contract out ACTION bus services, under promises made by Opposition Leader Kate Carnell yesterday. They were part of the small-business policy launched at a Mitchell-Gungahlin Chamber of Commerce lunch. A Liberal Government would set up a one-stop system for new businesses to deal with planning, leasing, building and other regulatory steps to set up a business. It would establish ACTTrade with a $5 million Budget to attract tourism and business to Canberra. Kingston foreshore would be redeveloped with outdoor cafes, medium density housing closer to the lake, offices and cultural space. The empty powerhouse would be converted to cultural space. “”At present it is an ACTEW dump in a prime site,” she said. “”A public-private corporation will be set up to get on with it.” A Liberal Government would set up a business-government body to cut red tape, similar to the Greiner model under which 3000 pages of regulations were repealed. Mrs Carnell indicated she would like to have freehold land, but said the Constitution prevented it. She promised automatic free renewal of all business and residential leases. The Government says it will charge 10 per cent of unimproved value for commercial leases and an administrative fee for residential leases. Mrs Carnell said the 10 per cent fee was unjustified because land values in Canberra indicated land was being treated as freehold, so the fee was a revenue-raising exercise. She promised to cut betterment tax from 100 per cent to 50 per cent. The tax is charged when people change the lease purpose of their land, say, to medium density housing or different commercial uses. Mrs Carnell said the Government had lost revenue since increasing the tax because commercial development had slowed because of it. Rates would be held to the CPI pending a renew on assessment methods. Mrs Carnell attacked business an employment costs. She said reducing payroll tax to NSW levels was not enough. The ACT had to attract business so she promised to cut it from 7 per cent to 6 per cent. (Payroll tax now nets the Government about $90 million a year. It is the largest revenue item.) She promised to abolish the rule requiring occupational health and safety committees and training in places that employed 10 or more people. The one-stop approach would mean that one person would be responsible for the carriage of a new business. This meant they were more accountable and could be rewarded for extra effort, she said. The ACT tourism and business promotion effort “”is a joke” compared to other states. The ACT spent $4.6 million on tourism, $2 million of it on promotion. Tasmania spent $22 million on promotion alone and the Northern Territory $21 million. A Liberal Government would begin development of Gungahlin Town Centre before end of the year. The legless lizard would be relocated (as was done at the Molonglo sewage treatment works). The centre would not be government-owned, nor owned by a large corporation _ as with the other centres. A strata title system would enable businesses to buy their shops in the centre. The Liberals would move away from youth training schemes because there were no jobs at the end of them and they unfairly raised expectations. Instead, employers would be subsidised to employ and train young people. On ACTION, Mrs Carnell said there would be competitive tenders for bus services with requirements to service certain routes. ACTION itself could tender competitively. She expected this would save $26 or $27 million of ACTION deficit of $50 million within three years. “”Under this system you tend to find more use of mini-buses and often you can get door-to-door service,” she said. Land tax would be assessed quarterly and only people earning an income from the land would be charged. After the launch she went to Ngunnawal to meet a home-owner, Normal Knowles, who has been hit by the present policy. Mr Knowles bought Tea Gardens, four 1857 rooms of which have been given a heritage listing, last year and is renovating with the intention of living in it. The house was extended in the 1950s. It now sits in a street surrounded by new houses. “”I was too honest; that’s my trouble,” he said yesterday. “”I filled out the land tax declaration and added a note that I was not living in the house but fixing it up before moving in.” The house does not have sewerage or water. He has never intended to rent it out. Mr Knowles was assessed for $1625 in land tax and the unimproved value of the place was assessed as $150,000 because the block is over 2000 square metres and was categorised as having medium density potential. However, the heritage listing prevents medium density development. Mrs Carnell said, “”Land tax is supposed to be for people renting places out; not for a renovator who intends to live there.” The Commissioner for ACT Revenue, Gordon Faichney, said the assessment and valuation had been objected to and the objections were under consideration. Several pics to chose from: Norman Knowles in unfinished bathroom// unfinished kitchen// outside (with or without Kate Carnell) at his partly renovated Ngunnawal home yesterday.