Restaurant & Catering Australia (R&CA) has welcomed the AC T Government’s new One Stop Café program, as announced in the 2018 – 19 Territory Budget. Under the program, café – owners will be able to access a single, online application form when establishing a new business rather than having to complete a multitude of separate forms across a variety of government agencies. The program is also intended to allow low – risk prospective café – owners the ability to receive their licences without the need for human intervention. R&CA CEO Juliana Payne commended the ACT Government’s explicit focus on reducing the red tape burden for café – owners as part of this year’s Budget measures. “The inflated number of approvals and licences required to establish a new café can be a great source of consternation for business – owners. One of the most common requests we’ve heard from café – owners is a one – stop shop handling all the government regulations they are required to comply with. “We are pleased to see the ACT Government’s recognition of this as part of today’s budget and offering a practical solution to improve this situation. “When activated, the One Stop Café initiative, will enable café – owners to seamlessly expand their businesses without being hamstrung by the burden of government red tape. “As we have already seen with the Easy to do Business Plan in NSW, consolidating government approvals and licenses all in the one place will free up a significant amount of a business – owner ’s time. “This initiative will allow owners to run their businesses in a more effective and efficient manner which will ultimately be for the betterment of both the community and the ACT economy.” Ms Payne said.

For further information on this media release, please contact: Juliana Payne Chief Executive Officer Restaurant & Catering Industry Association P: 1300 722 878 E: restncat@restaurantcater.asn.au