Nene urged to cut fat rather than hike taxes
OPPOSITION political parties said Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene should commit to cutting the fat, and not raising taxes, when he tables the medium-term budget policy statement in Parliament today.
The parties said they expected Nene to walk a tightrope as sluggish economic growth and an expected increase in the budget deficit would leave him little wiggle room.
“In the end, with weaker- than-expected growth, lowerthan-expected revenue and higher-than-expected expenditure, it is difficult to see how the minister will narrow the budget deficit, stabilise public debt and rebuild fiscal space,” DA MP David Maynier said.
“What we need is a mediumterm budget policy statement that is ambitious and aimed not just at balancing the books, but also at lifting the economy out of the low-growth, highunemployment spiral…”
Maynier believed selling off or leasing state assets to raise revenue, reducing the size of President’s Jacob Zuma’s cabinet and “privatising or part-privatising zombie state-owned enterprises” could help the gov- ernment increase its revenue.
IFP MP Sibongile Nkomo said her party would also support cutting reckless spending, rather than raising taxes.
“As a country, we’ve seen a lot of wasteful and reckless expenditure, where we are saying a line must be drawn in the sand with regard to corruption and related activities,” Nkomo said.
The African Christian Democratic Party said it expected Nene to revise his growth forecast of 2 percent, which he predicted in February, to be lowered even further.
“The answer is to reduce government expenditure by addressing wasteful and corrupt expenditure, which is estimated at R30 billion a year,” ACDP MP Steve Swart said.
“We are not in favour of increased taxes, but do understand the minister has very little room to move. The answer lies in economic growth premised on the speedy implemen- tation of the National Development Plan and addressing constraints to economic growth such as the power crisis, labour unrest and infrastructure constraints.”
The EFF had only one comment on its expectations. “We expect Nhlanhla Nene to provide a comprehensive funding solution to the university fees crisis. It is a crisis,” said party spokesman Mbuyiseni Ndlozi – ANA
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