Policy
The rules behind economic participation: what governments collect data on, how they define eligibility and how decisions are put into practice. We explain the stated objectives, requirements and available evidence without treating a policy announcement as an outcome.
All policy pieces
AnalysisWhat the 2026 Census will show about business owners by sexual orientation and gender
The 2026 Census was the first to ask Australians about sexual orientation and gender, and its results will describe people who work in their own business by those characteristics. They will not provide a count of LGBTIQA+ owned enterprises, which would require a separate survey that no organisation has yet committed to build.
AnalysisLGBTIQA+ Advisory Board recruitment opens while the research method is still in draft
The State of LGBTQ+ Business in Australia starts in March 2027, and members of the LGBTIQA+ Advisory Board are being recruited now so that they can test its method while it is still in draft. The board’s role, funding, terms and application process are set out below.
ExplainerDiscrimination law and the LGBTIQA+ business owner: finance, customers, employment and complaints
Federal law has prohibited discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status since 1 August 2013. This explainer sets out how that protection applies when a business owner seeks finance or insurance, deals with customers and contracting organisations, and employs staff, and identifies where the protection is limited or uncertain.
AnalysisAustralian LGBTIQA+ grant programs are designed for community organisations, and several exclude businesses
A review of LGBTIQA+ grant programs in five jurisdictions finds that they are designed for community organisations, and that several exclude businesses in writing. Where Victoria funds businesses on the basis of who owns them, LGBTIQA+ ownership is not among the categories supported.
AnalysisAustralia’s count of 2.8 million businesses does not identify LGBTIQA+ owned businesses
The national business count records what Australian businesses do, where they operate and how many people they employ, but it does not record whether their owners are LGBTIQA+. The 2026 Census will provide some information on LGBTIQA+ people who work in their own business from October 2027, more slowly and less completely than many will expect, and it will not produce a count of LGBTIQA+ owned enterprises.
AnalysisSupplier diversity programs defended on the business case are the most exposed to political change
For twenty years the case for supplier diversity has relied mainly on claims of business benefit. This analysis argues that those claims are now the weakest part of the model, and that programs built on defined categories, verification and reported targets are better placed to last.
