Workers cannot afford for Parliament not to pass a progressive Budget - Cosatu

WORKERS cannot afford for Parliament not to pass a progressive Budget. Whilst there have been previous minor delays in the formal passing of Budgets by Parliament, South Africa has never ventured into the current impasse where society and government are not sure when and in what form the Budget will be passed.

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The National Assembly is scheduled to vote on the Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals, the two foundational pieces for the Budget, on April 2, with the remaining legislative components to be adopted afterwards.

The law provides various provisions in the event of further delays to adopting the Budget, including a prohibition on new expenditure items and expenditure reduction to a limited period of time to 45% of previously approved allocations. This would mean new items contained in the proposed Budget, e.g. expanding the basket of VAT exempted items, adjusting social grants for above inflation increases, filling of 1 400 doctors and 4 000 police officer posts or even the recently signed wage agreement for helpless teachers and other highly indebted public servants cannot be implemented until a new Budget is adopted.

While the 45% limit for a short period on existing spending can help ensure the public servants’ salaries and social grants are paid, government in effect would grind to a halt. This is something public service vacancies battling to deliver after years of ill-considered austerity budget cuts, the numbers of vacancies and decaying infrastructure cannot afford, neither can 19 million social grant recipients struggling to cope with the rising costs of living. Nor can South Africa sustain the type of budget impasse often experienced in the US where government is required to shut down all non-essential public services suspended and public servants sent home unpaid.