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Cape Town - South Africa’s budget for 2016/17 will be adjusted downwards by R9.6bn, following a additions for unforeseeable expenditure, rollovers as well as under-spending and unspent funds.
National Treasury made a representation on the adjustments to the budget at a joint meeting of Parliament’s Finance Committees and said the total budget for 2016/17 will therefore decrease from R1.318trn to R1.308trn.
New additions in the budget amount to R4.3bn, which include provision for unforeseeable expenditure, such as R2m for the provision of legal fees for the Presidency and R71.3m due to costs that were incurred because the local government elections were moved from May to August.
There are also rollovers of R412.2m from unspent funds in the previous financial year, and a total additional allocation of R553.3m for drought relief measures, a packaged desalination plant to be used in coastal areas and water storage for drought-stricken areas.
The monetary additions were offset among other things by under-spending of R4.2bn, R1.3bn in unspent funds – by and large because of decreased spending on compensation of employees – and a decrease in the projected state costs of R30.7m.
The changes to the budget forms part of the 2016 Adjustments Appropriation Bill, which will serve before the National Assembly for voting.
David Maynier, DA spokesperson on Finance, said previously that there’s still too much “fat” in the budget and highlighted R1bn worth of “unnecessary expenditure”, such as new ministerial vehicles for certain ministers valued at more than R9m altogether, R1m for “office equipment for the minister” at the labour department and R600 000 for the “replacement of office furniture” for the labour department’s attaché in Geneva.
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National Treasury made a representation on the adjustments to the budget at a joint meeting of Parliament’s Finance Committees and said the total budget for 2016/17 will therefore decrease from R1.318trn to R1.308trn.
New additions in the budget amount to R4.3bn, which include provision for unforeseeable expenditure, such as R2m for the provision of legal fees for the Presidency and R71.3m due to costs that were incurred because the local government elections were moved from May to August.
There are also rollovers of R412.2m from unspent funds in the previous financial year, and a total additional allocation of R553.3m for drought relief measures, a packaged desalination plant to be used in coastal areas and water storage for drought-stricken areas.
The monetary additions were offset among other things by under-spending of R4.2bn, R1.3bn in unspent funds – by and large because of decreased spending on compensation of employees – and a decrease in the projected state costs of R30.7m.
The changes to the budget forms part of the 2016 Adjustments Appropriation Bill, which will serve before the National Assembly for voting.
David Maynier, DA spokesperson on Finance, said previously that there’s still too much “fat” in the budget and highlighted R1bn worth of “unnecessary expenditure”, such as new ministerial vehicles for certain ministers valued at more than R9m altogether, R1m for “office equipment for the minister” at the labour department and R600 000 for the “replacement of office furniture” for the labour department’s attaché in Geneva.
Read Fin24's top stories trending on Twitter: Fin24’s top stories
