Hon Speaker, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, hon members, and distinguished guests, on 23 October 2013 the Minister of Finance tabled the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement. My task today is to present the analysis of the Revised Fiscal Framework, after the Standing Committee on Finance concluded its public hearings on the proposed Medium- Term Budget Policy Statement.
The fiscal path over the last 19 years has proved to be credible, reliable and predictable. As such it has always served as a basis to assure millions of South Africans that the South Africa of tomorrow will always be better than the South Africa of yesterday, and to ignite new confidence in the investor community, as was demonstrated in the course of the committee's interactions with various stakeholders during our public hearings.
Allow me to take this opportunity to invite all hon members to congratulate our Minister of Finance, hon Pravin Gordhan, for being named by emerging markets as the Finance Minister of the Year for 2013 in sub-Saharan Africa. [Applause.] This is not new, and it is not something that should surprise us.
Since 2006 the Open Budget Index performance initiative has always rated South Africa as amongst the top five in the area of budget transparency and openness. In 2008 we were rated second; in 2010 we were rated first; and in 2012 we were rated second. We are and will continue to be a good example to many, in both the developed and the emerging economies. Hon Ministers, this is a part of the narrative that we are not telling but which we should tell, in order to continue to inspire confidence locally and internationally, and to sustain the investor confidence we need so much under these difficult global conditions.
Indeed, since the advent of democracy the ANC and its government have ensured that fiscal stability and sustainability remain the bedrock of our economic foundation: to achieve sustainable and inclusive growth; to create jobs; and to eliminate poverty and inequalities.
Minister, you have consistently raised a concern about the kind of narrative or story we are telling about ourselves, as individuals and as organisations, both domestically and internationally. Let me bring to your attention something which you might be aware of. Only yesterday Business Day reported that the Chief Executive Officer of one of South Africa's largest gold-mining companies, Neal Froneman, said that the government "seems to despise the industry." He went on to say that government had to create the right platform for the mining industry whether they liked it or not. They had to create the right platform at the moment. We need a supportive government. Organised labour needs to take a long-term view and we all need to look at the long-term benefits rather than short- term agendas.
The point I am making here is that whilst it is correct for the industry to raise their expectations, we equally expect them to spell out their own obligations to government, labour and, in particular, the communities in which they conduct their mining activities.
In his own assertion, the CEO only expects the solution to come from government and labour, and in that regard the industry has no role to play in creating a conducive working and productive environment between employees and employers. In his view, government should remain central in resolving labour relations industrial actions.
Domestically, we have made huge social and economic advances that few other countries have been able to achieve in less than 20 years of democracy. Certainly, we still face challenges, but it is in the quality of the leadership provided by the ANC government that the answers to the economic challenges we face today are to be found.
Today we can say without a tinge of arrogance or fear of contradicting ourselves that the countercyclical fiscal path is responding to the challenges of the poor and the needs of our general population. The countercyclical fiscal policy has responded positively and continues to reaffirm the principles of long-term sustainability and fiscal consolidation to support inclusive economic growth and to ensure service delivery.
Over the medium term the Revised Fiscal Framework will ensure that government is able to meet the 2013 fiscal deficit target of 4,2%. The ANC supports this Revised Fiscal Framework and so does the committee. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
There was no debate.