Parly finance committee chair doesn’t fear not being able to pass national budget within prescribed time limit

CAPE TOWN - Chairperson of Parliament’s standing committee on finance says he doesn’t fear not being able to pass a national budget within the legally prescribed time limit. 

Joe Maswanganyi expects the finance minister to table a new budget before the end of May as the clock ticks down on the four-month deadline following the start of a new financial year. 

On Wednesday, Treasury is expected to provide details on how it expects the new budget process to unfold. 

Parliament has had to put its budget calendar on ice following the withdrawal of the Division of Revenue and Appropriation Bills that were tabled in March. 

As it now prepares for budget number 3, Maswanganyi is not concerned that the process is having to start from scratch. 

READ: Treasury set to brief media on budget process following VAT reversal

“We are still within time, it will be a problem if it’s beyond the end of July. We believe if the minister can table the budget now, in May, the budget will be adopted before the end of July.” 

Should the process take longer than four months since the start of the financial year, the finance minister will only be able to spend up to a third of the previous year’s budget.

Maswanganyi cancelled Wednesday’s meeting of the committee, which was due to get its first briefing on the new tax bill the minister introduced to Parliament last week aimed at reversing his proposal to hike the value-added tax (VAT) rate. 

Maswanganyi said his committee will wait for a new fiscal framework to be tabled first to ensure the new tax bill is aligned.