Budget Speech: FF+ wants tax reductions, BOSA hopes for plans to 'ignite rapid economic growth'
Some political parties have made last-minute inputs for Wednesday afternoon's Budget Speech, with calls for structural reforms to promote economic growth.
FILE: Enoch Godongwana, the South African Minister of Finance, delivers his Mid-Term Budget Policy Statement in the Cape Town City Hall, which is being used as a venue for the South African Parliament, in Cape Town on 1 November 2023. Picture: RODGER BOSCH / AFP
CAPE TOWN - Some political parties have made last-minute inputs for Wednesday afternoon's Budget Speech, with calls for structural reforms to promote economic growth.
The Freedom Front Plus said it would like to see a tax reduction across the spectrum instead of a tax increase that many have predicted.
The Mmusi Maimane-led Build One South Africa (BOSA), meanwhile, said that the most pressing priority right now was "how to ignite rapid economic growth through expansive foreign direct investment".
The Freedom Front Plus said that the African National Congress (ANC) government "is so incompetent" that it would be "wishful thinking to expect a meaningful outlook" on the expectations for Wednesday's Budget Speech.
Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana's budget comes at a tough time for consumers, with a rise in the cost of living and rising unemployment.
But FF PLUS MP Wouter Wessels said they would like to see taxes not being increased but rather reduced to give the economy a much-needed injection.
He said that structural reforms were needed to remove the institutional obstacles to economic growth like "restrictions" placed on the private sector to create jobs and contribute to the economy.
Meanwhile, BOSA acting spokesperson, Roger Solomons, said that Godongwana would table the budget at a time of "great uncertainty".
He said that the most pressing priority was how to ignite rapid economic growth through expansive foreign direct investment.