Cafes have suppressed price rises amid tepid demand and high competition, which has seen profit margins fall from about 3.5 per cent to less than 2.5 per cent, Australian Restaurant and Cafe Association chief executive Wes Lambert says. “This is putting a lot of pressure on the industry and the cafe segment in particular, and that’s leading us to see, according to CreditorWatch, one in nine cafes and restaurants going into liquidation in the past 12 months,” he says. “Ultimately, unless demand increases or prices increase, the industry is going to stay in the doldrums when it comes to profitability.”

Wes Lambert, CEO of the Australian Restaurant & Cafe Association, said the decision would also affect hospitality businesses. It marks a “serious blow to Australia’s already fragile hospitality workforce pipeline,” he wrote on social media. “At a time when restaurants, cafés and pubs are battling chronic skills shortages, rising wage pressures, and declining training enrolments, removing support for apprentices doesn’t just hurt young people entering the industry — it puts the entire sector at risk.”

Australian Restaurant and Cafe Association chief executive Wes Lambert said pop up concerts were welcome but the equivalent of “band-aids on a bullet wound” to confidence in the city. “Months of rolling protests and rampant street crime have punched a massive hole in hospitality trade, and a few events won’t undo that,” Mr Lambert said. “If the State Government wants restaurants, cafés and bars to survive, it must restore safety, stability and consumer trust — concerts alone won’t keep our doors open.”