Hon Deputy Chair, today my heart goes out to the more than 10 million unemployed and many job seeking South African citizens, which cover 56,4% of the youth between the ages of 15 and 24. As I speak, South Africa's official unemployment rate has jumped from 27,6% in the first quarter to 29% in the second quarter, the highest since the start of 2008.
Hon Deputy Chair, the new dawn of President Ramaphosa seems to be a deceased dawn and a pipedream. During the state of the nation address debate the President announced that 200 000 jobs will be created, a few days later though, he stated that massive job cuts are on the table. Unemployment is a time bomb waiting to explode. With an unsustainable economy, we will only see many more job cuts
which this country can no longer afford. This country is in dire need of a desperate boost which can be bought about with policy changers.
Another Eskom bailout, hon Deputy Chair, this time of R59 billion is an absolute insult to South Africans for having to again foot the bill for government failures. The Northern Cape is enduring a harsh drought with 62 000 jobs at risk if no intervention is initiated by the provincial government.
Hon Deputy Chair, with the DA's proposed Jobs Act, we can stimulate the economy to benefit South Africans, as the Act covers many interventions which will lead to creation of jobs, where techniques will be streamlined especially for our business owners and we must revive sectors like the manufacturing sector through tax incentives.
In June this year, the economy suffered a huge blow with poor Gross Domestic Product, GDP, the worst in a decade and the continuous mixed messages from Luthuli house and the government, especially, theirs around the Reserve Bank mandate, this left many prospective investors that could have assisted in job creation in a state of utter unease.
Hon Deputy Chair, we need strong leadership to build a capable uncaptured state that can save South Africa and our unemployed. In order to halt the ever-growing level of unemployment, government needs to invest more resources into education, create an environment for entrepreneurs to thrive and ensure clean and transparent governance. Deputy Chair, in light of this, the DA can therefore not support the budget. Thank you.
I am sorry, I didn't want to interrupt my fellow member in the House, but this hon member this side, unfortunately I don't know his name said while she was speaking that, o maaka [she is lying.] [Laughter.] He said it three times that she is lying. So, can you please remind him that it is not parliamentary to say that the member is lying in the House. Thank you.
We will have to check, or let me ask, hon member, did you say that? Okay, we will have to check. Hon members, can we continue? The ANC can go on making declaration of vote.
Deputy Chairperson of the NCOP, the ANC supports Vote 28, particularly because of the ANC's commitment to spearhead and make strides in terms of developing laws to enforce the
legislation in workplace. Amongst our key laws, is the Labour Relations Act 1995 that indeed has made tremendous impact in terms of how workplace must be organised.
Secondly, we rise as the ANC to support this budget allocation precisely by virtue of its commitment to ensure that indeed the Minimum Wage Act is a step closer to mitigate the impact on our working class and the poor, such that we are able to ensure that there is smooth implementation of this Act.
Also, the ANC supports this budget because of its commitment to finalise the Employment Equity Bill which has to be finalised before or during 2019- 20 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF. We also support this Bill precisely by virtue of the fact that it will be able to empower the Minister to set a sector specific employment equity targets and the promulgation of section 53 of the Act.
It is upon this background that the ANC sees the budget as vital in reducing income gap in the workplace. Also, the allocation on labour policy and industrial relations programme is also vital on South Africa to co- chair the international labour relations organisations and global commission. We also take note of the department's commitment to utilise the Unemployment Insurance Fund, UIF, as a
platform to be able to reskill and retrain, so that we are able to mitigate the effects of job losses.
The ANC also continues also with its work to increase labour intensive industries to accommodate the demand for jobs, particularly with regard to public employment programme creation which also will be able to ensure that we broaden the space for the working class and the poor to be able to get access to decent jobs.
The Department of Labour's mandate on ensuring that there is decent work is pursued under the conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity, the ideals that drove our people to create a blueprint called the Freedom Charter. Therefore, the ANC supports this budget. Thank you, Deputy Chair. [Applause.]
Thank you hon members. I will now request those that are not in favour of this Budget Vote to say no.
HON MEMBERS: No.
Can I now ask those that are in favour to say yes.
HON MEMBERS: Yes.
Thank you very much. It's clear that the yeses have it. If there is no request for division we will continue. Yes hon Smit. In fact, I would give a chance to your colleague at the back, but it's fine you can continue.
Division demanded.
The Council divided:
[Take in from Minutes.]
Vote agreed to. (Democratic Alliance, Economic Freedom Fighters and Freedom Front Plus dissenting).
Vote 29: Mineral Resources, put.
Declarations of vote:
Hon Chairperson, since the discovery of the diamonds and gold at the end of the 19th century, mining and mineral resource have defined South Africa. It brought the industrial revolution to the country and it was the need for the land and the labour in the
mining industry we were one of the key reasons while the Black majority were dispossessed of their land. It is because of the importance of the industry to our economy that the current Minister of mineral resource acting on behalf of an Australian mining company want to kick the people of Xolobani of their land. That is why 34 mine workers were killed in Marikana at Lonn Min, when the current President was once a shareholder. The 25 years into democracy and the mining industry, still serve the interest of the white monopoly capital as it always has. This is why we are disappointed in the Minister's decision with the raw minerals and petroleum resource development amendment Bill. The Bill was a unique opportunity to advance the state ownership and sharing in profit of mineral and petroleum resource. It was a unique opportunity to allow for the development of our economy and creation of quality jbs. We cannot continue to have an economy that has extracted mineral resources. Those mineral resources also need to be processed and go through a process of beneficiation so that they can be turned into industrial products that South Africa consumes.
But this government remains intent on keeping our economy in a relationship of dependence with west and the other parts of the world, which only serves the benefit of the capital and not the people of South Africa. This is why mine workers receive poverty
wages. This why the death from mining incidents continue to increase and this why your department withdraw the MPRDA Bill. The EFF rejects this Vote, I thank you.
Thanks very much deputy Chairperson, the ANC supports the mineral resource budget vote. In appropriating finance to realise the vision of reviving mining, as a sign rise industry in line with the President's Sona. South Africa is blessed with world class mineral deposits and our country needs an appropriate policy regime to ensure that our minerals contribute to economic development, creating jobs, lift our people out of poverty.
This budget vote deputy Chairperson, focuses on resuscitating the green field exploration and government has focussed investing in the geosciences mapping programme through increased transfer to the department's entity, the council for geosciences. This programme will increase investment and exploration of new minerals and petroleum deposits, thus contributing to the President's drive to attract R100 billion US$ investment into our economy over the medium term.
The fruits of stable policy and regulatory framework are visible and this is key to government's growth and competitiveness strategy for
the mine. The success of this is evidenced by the significant investment totalling to 45 billion and the creation of an estimated 4. 000 permanent jobs just in the past years. This includes 21.8 billion by Vendatta resources in the Northern Cape, SASOL, 14 billion mine replacement programme in Mpumalanga, the Exaro, 3.3 billion mining investment in Belfast also in Mpumalanga.
In the medium term, department has reported that the total of 60 mineral resources projects are in the pipeline with an investment estimated value at 110 billion and projected creation of jobs deputy Chairperson of 3 2000 jobs. In order to maximize the impact and minimize the potential harm in mining, the vote makes transfer of mine health and safety. Government will also ensure that the mining industry engages proactively with the other stakeholders such as agriculture, environment and tourism sector as well as our mining communities. So that, our people can benefit. So, the ANC supports the budget vote, I thank you.
Division demanded.
The Council divided: