Hon Deputy Speaker, the NFP is of the opinion that the three tax-related Bills in their current form are in the best interests of the people of South Africa and the country as a whole.
The following aspects of the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill are noted with particular interest by the NFP. Pertaining to the proposal to remove the VAT zero rating of agricultural inputs, the NFP fully supports the postponement of the proposal to repeal provision for the zero rating of certain agricultural inputs. We are of the opinion that the repeal of the existing provisions will not be in the best interests of the agricultural sector and argue for more effective implementation of the current mechanism legislation to reduce VAT-related fraud in the agricultural sector.
The NFP is in support of the measures introduced in the Bill based on the recommendation by the Davis Tax Committee. These amendments acknowledge and take into consideration the existing role of small business in the economy, as well as government's intention to grow the economy and increase employment through an expansion of the number of small businesses.
In particular the NFP welcomes the revision of small business corporate tax relief and the tax incentives for provision of funding to small, medium and micro enterprises. We firmly believe that small businesses are of crucial importance in order to stem the tide of unemployment in South Africa, and every effort must be made to provide tax relief and incentives to actively grow this sector of the economy.
Pertaining to tax-free savings accounts for individuals, the NFP is pleased that the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill contains a provision for tax-free savings accounts, to which individuals can contribute a maximum of R30 000 per year and R500 000 over their lifetime. The NFP also notes that a degree of flexibility is built into the provision, which we believe will encourage domestic saving, as the funds will not be tied down as in conventional investments. We suggest that the maximum threshold be increased in future to encourage more people to put their money into domestic saving.
The NFP also welcomes the revision of Sharia-compliant financing arrangements, which complements legislation enacted in 2010 and amended in 2011 to recognise certain forms of Islamic finance arrangements. We believe the proposed amendments will facilitate the participation of public entities, that is, state-owned entities, in such arrangements, and is likely to constitute an affordable source of funding for those entities.
The NFP is furthermore in agreement with the amendments as proposed in the Rates and Monetary Amounts and Amendment of Revenue Laws Bill and the Tax Administration Laws Amendment Bill. We are satisfied that the amendments are largely technical in nature, designed to synchronise various provisions in tax-related legislation and accurately reflect the tax proposals contained in the hon Minister of Finance's Budget Speech of 2014.
In conclusion, the NFP is in support of the tax-related Bills presented to this honourable House. I thank you.