It is important the Canberra community, particularly the ACT government, takes notice of the news 228 local businesses hit the wall between July and September this year.

While these haven't been the most prosperous times, what with the the usual uncertainties surrounding elections, concerns about the ACT's AAA credit rating and the lingering effects of public sector cutbacks, they haven't been the worst of times either.

It is hard to discern why, at the end of a year in which the ASX is closing at near record levels, inflation and unemployment are at near historical lows and in which business confidence is tracking well, Canberra's latest failed businesses report logged its worst outcome in years.

While, as Canberra Business Chamber chief executive Robyn Hendry has observed, the limited scope of the statistics gathered by Dunn and Bradstreet makes truly forensic analysis almost impossible, it is fair to say local factors must have played a part.

And, if history is any guide, it is highly likely a disproportionate number of the companies that have gone under would be linked to the construction sector.

The unique nature of Canberra's property market, in which the ACT government acts as the monopoly land supplier and, in recent times, developer, contributes to the sector's volatility.

There have also been a succession of high profile failures, some by long established major building companies, that have created a cascade of smaller liquidations and bankruptcies down the line.

The recent collapse of Today's Homes, while outside the period under discussion, can be expected to generate a similar domino effect amongst suppliers and contractors in the months to come.

Interestingly, despite the latest figures, Ms Hendry said the majority of chamber members had a positive outlook.

"[Our] most recent survey of small to medium businesses found the majority were as, or more, confident than they were last year," she said.

This may reflect the type of people who take a punt and back themselves in a business operation rather than settling for the security of a public sector job or working for a larger commercial enterprise.

Because this is a public sector city, founded by statute and built on regulations and ordinances, the value and quality of our legions of small to medium business entrepreneurs is not as widely acknowledged as it should be.

Some of those entrepreneurs have highlighted excessive red tape, rising costs and skills shortages as impediments to both expansion and survival however.

While costs are outside the bailiwick of the recently re-elected Barr government, bureaucracy and skills shortages are two issues it does have the power to address.

If Canberra is to broaden its economic base its small to medium business community needs to be supported.