Galaxy Day Care PTY LTD and Secretary, Department of Education and Training

This matter concerned an application by Galaxy Day Care Pty Ltd (the Applicant) for a stay of a decision by the Secretary, Department of Education and Training (the Respondent) to cancel the Applicant's registration as a provider of day care services. The cancellation decision was made under the *A New Tax System (Family Assistance)(Administration) Act 1999* (Cth). The Applicant sought the stay pending the determination of its application for review by the Tribunal.

The legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it was desirable to grant a stay of the cancellation decision, pursuant to section 41(2) of the *Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975* (AAT Act). In considering this, the Tribunal was required to determine if a stay was necessary for the purpose of securing the effectiveness of the hearing and determination of the application for review, taking into account the interests of any persons affected by the review. The Tribunal clarified that it was not conducting a merits review of the original decision at this stage.

The Tribunal reasoned that the purpose of a stay application is to preserve the subject matter of the review to ensure the effectiveness of the final decision. However, the Tribunal found that granting a stay was not necessary to achieve this objective in the present case. The Tribunal noted the extensive and serious nature of the Applicant's non-compliance, including numerous instances of inaccurate reporting, false claims for child care benefits, and breaches of educator-to-child ratios over a prolonged period. Despite the Applicant's submissions regarding steps to address non-compliance, the Respondent considered these insufficient to mitigate the identified issues. The Tribunal concluded that its responsibility to protect the public interest, by promoting good government, weighed against granting a stay.

Consequently, the Tribunal refused the application for a stay of the Department's decision.