eBay’s Vice President of eBay Inc. Australia, Deborah Sharkey, has written an article for a newly launched magazine, Political Trends. The monthly magazine, launched last month, is aimed at Australian politicians, staffers and lobbyists operating in and around the nation's state and federal parliaments.

Each month, Political Trends will look at a different policy areas and include contributions from a variety of parliamentarians, staffers and industry stakeholders.

The first edition includes contributions from across the political spectrum, including Federal Communications Minister Stephen Conroy, Opposition spokesman on Health and Ageing Peter Dutton, Bennelong MP John Alexander, and Greens Senator Scott Ludlam.

In the article, Deborah Sharkey says: “Ecommerce is the biggest catalyst for growth in the retail industry today, encouraging entrepreneurship, enabling new businesses to emerge and compete with more established players, which in turn spurs long term economic growth. Last year the top 2,000 Australian businesses on ebay.com.au grew by 38 percent, employing an average of 4.4 paid staff with that average expected to increase to 6 paid staff in 2011. Ecommerce also creates significant opportunity for established manufacturers; retailers and logistics providers who are prepared to evolve and meet the needs of the modern consumer. Further enabled by faster broadband, Australian businesses will continue to have strong growth, and remain competitive with the rest of the world.”