Godongwana sets new date for Budget 2025

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana says that a new or revised budget will be tabled on 12 March 2025.

This follows the cancellation of the budget speech on Wednesday (19 February) so that further deliberations could take place within the Government of National Unity (GNU).

The minister said that the budget must “strike a balance between the interests of the public, economic growth and financial sustainability”.

The cabinet was in agreement that more time was needed to get this balance, the minister said.

Godongwana noted that the budget has to be tabled before the start of the new financial year, but the law does make provision for exceptional circumstances.

The budget can be tabled after the start of the new financial year if the finance minister deems it necessary.

South Africa’s new financial year starts on 1 March 2025, with most tax hikes kicking in from 1 April. Godongwana said that the “next date” to keep diarised is 12 March.

Speaker of the National Assembly Thoko Didiza announced the cancellation of the budget speech 20 minutes after the address was supposed to happen.

This is an unprecedented move and has never happened in democratic South Africa.

She said the cancellation was due to parties within the GNU not agreeing on certain budget proposals.

The main issue of contention was a two percentage point hike in Value-Added Tax to 17%.

Godongwana said that this wasn’t the only point of contention, saying that the state cannot address the 2pp VAT hike without looking at what to do with the rest of the budget if it is not implemented.

“This is something that has to be debated,” he said.

“If you ask me as a finance minister, I like the exercise. It forces some of the things we have not been doing—to discuss trade-offs. In that sense, the cabinet itself is becoming engaging.

“A budget is a statement of the cabinet, and when the cabinet becomes involved in detailed discussions, it’s useful for us,” he said.

Many members of parliament criticized the executive as incompetent, highlighting it as a low point in South Africa’s democracy.

Minister in the presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said that the decision to cancel the Wednesday sitting was a cabinet decision.

She added that disagreements with the budget did not come from one party but were across all parties and even within the ANC.

“Because the special cabinet meeting started late, we requested that the Deputy President ask the National Assembly for time to debate,” she said.

“We have agreed on 12 March.”