SA's budget is not too late for amendments, say social justice bodies
They also argued for increased spending for the health and education sectors, with the division of revenue to provinces and government departments.
Picture: EWN
CAPE TOWN - Social justice and non-profit organisations were back in Parliament on Tuesday to continue their fight against the budget, saying it’s not too late for amendments.
They also argued for increased spending for the health and education sectors, with the division of revenue to provinces and government departments.
They made the submissions during another round of public hearings on the Division of Revenue Bill before the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) select committee on appropriations.
While Parliament has adopted the fiscal framework and revenue proposals, organisations have not given up the fight against the value-added tax (VAT) increase.
Section27’s budget analyst, Matshidiso Lencoasa, says while they accept the division of revenue, their main issue with the budget is still the fiscal framework and the VAT increase of 1% over two years.
She says there’s still time to make changes because the VAT increase will have far-reaching consequences.
“We are really urging and saying that it is not too late to correct, because amandla.mobi also made a similar point because the VAT increase will likely, as we’ve seen in 2018, cause an increase in inflation.”
Organisations like Equal Education emphasised the need for investment in school infrastructure and solutions to the shortage of teachers.
They’ve also called for pre-budget hearings to be reintroduced as part of the process.
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