Page 3929 - Week 10 - Thursday, 20 September 2018
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and diverse innovative businesses through a regulatory system that helps promote vibrant, active and safe small businesses for the entire sector.
MS ORR: Can the minister outline how cutting red tape for incorporated associations will help simplify requirements for those groups who are helping Canberrans all across the city?
MR RAMSAY: I thank Ms Orr for the supplementary question. The red tape reduction bill that we passed just this week has overhauled the incorporated associations act to modernise and to simplify the requirements for associated incorporations right across the territory. There are all manner of these associations across Canberra, from the Ainslie Football Club and the Legacy Club of Canberra to the ACT and Region Machine Knitters Guild and Canberra Underwater Rugby. These associations come in all sizes and for all manner of purposes. That is why we are ensuring that we will have governing regulations that are modern and relevant to their purpose.
Of most importance, we are ensuring that, in particular, the smallest of these associations are not bogged down in red tape. We have simplified the audit requirements for them. We have removed the need for common seals. We have updated contact detail requirements so that individual residential addresses do not need to be published, and we have removed some restrictions on trading. These are just a few of the many changes that we are making to simplify the incorporated associations act.
The government is working to make sure that our community groups, our school P&Cs, our multicultural groups, our seniors groups and all our various incorporated associations across the territory work in a modern and simple regulatory framework so that they can spend their time serving the community and not doing paperwork.
MR PETTERSSON: Can the minister provide more detail to the Assembly about how the government is cutting red tape and supporting active and vibrant small businesses?
MR RAMSAY: I thank Mr Pettersson for the supplementary question. The government is working to promote a vibrant and active small business sector in the city. It is why we set up a specific team in Access Canberra to help facilitate the opening of liquor and food businesses, giving them a case manager to coordinate and guide them through the regulatory processes. This team continues to do good work in explaining the system to new business owners and helping them to get their business up and running.
It is also why we have provided one month’s free outdoor dining to cafes, bars and restaurants. This allows businesses to trial outdoor dining to see if it will work in their location and with their particular business model. Every cafe, bar and restaurant with a permit is given this free month every year.
As the weather warms up Access Canberra is reaching out to relevant businesses to remind them of these services. They will be working with businesses across the city to
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