How the DA would spend your money if it had control of the budget
The Democratic Alliance has published its ‘alternative budget’, where the party suggests over 400 amendments, saving R10.8 billion which can be better spent improving the lives of South Africans.
The party said it has identified a host of items in the current budget that can be cut and re-prioritised, mostly coming from items being spent on VIPs, such as VIP security and travel arrangements.
The DA said that R1.2 billion can be saved by simulating a “hiring freeze” and cutting spending on any new employees in the twenty seven national departments, which have not been “fire walled” against spending cuts in 2017/18.
R3.4 billion can be saved by cutting back on advertising, use of contractors, legal services, and catering and venue hire and travel subsistence for government activities.
A further R6.2 billion can be saved by cutting out National Treasury’s ‘secret services’ and VIP protection services with the police. Included in this amount, the DA says that a R1.3 billion VIP regional jet can also be nixed, and R4.5 billion for the BRICS developmental bank should also be re-prioritised.
“We have therefore identified total savings in the amount of R10.8 billion within the
budget for 2017/18. What this means is that the amendments we propose are ‘budget
neutral’ and can be funded from within the existing budget, and will have no effect
on the fiscal deficit, which is estimated to be R149 billion, or -3.1% of GDP, in 2017/18,” the party said.
The party proposed that the R10.8 billion be spent on other matters of national interest:
- Creating jobs by allocating an additional R1.5 billion to provide 213 602 more
work opportunities in the Expanded Public Works Programme;
- Fighting crime by allocating an additional R688 million to establish a standalone specialized unit to fight drug-related crime;
- Supporting poor students by allocating an additional R3.5 billion to provide financial assistance to 63,331 more students who are enrolled, or who would like to enroll, at technical and vocational training colleges;
- Fighting corruption by allocating an additional R174 million to boost the
investigative capacity of the Public Protector;
- Assisting the poor by allocating an additional R4.5 billion to prevent
malnutrition among children and assist people battling high food prices; and
- Combatting cross border crime by allocating an additional R483 million to fund 7 more sub-units (+/- 945 soldiers) to safeguard the landward borders of South Africa.
The DA said that it will formally table the proposals in the form of 405 amendments to the Appropriations Bill, in the amount of R10.8 billion, at a meeting of the Standing Committee on Appropriations on 31 May 2017 in Parliament.
The tables below detail where the DA proposes savings, and where it proposes the money should go:
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