Chairperson, there are two issues in question right now, which makes the DA not support the Rates and Monetary Amounts and Amendment of Revenue Laws Bill. I need to make it clear that it is about the adjustments for inflation and the retirement fund lump-sum withdrawal.
With regard to the adjustments for inflation, as ANC government we have made such adjustments since 2009. The problem is that the adjustment made is not according to the percentage as determined by the DA, but according to the needs of the country. That is where the problem lies.
I now come to the retirement fund lump sum withdrawal and the amendments that we are making today. If you remember, we raised them in 2009 when we said that if you want to withdraw from the R22 000 of the retirement fund, such a withdrawal will be a nontaxable amount. With this amendment we are proposing that this withdrawal must be from R315 000. We are talking here about ordinary workers in the community. We are not talking about people who earn millions and billions. We are talking about people who will gain from these amendments - people who are going to say they can withdraw R315 000 without a tax. Nowhere in the Bill is there a section which says it is compulsory for you not to take your money out.
However, the Bill says that if you take an amount exceeding, for example, R650 000, you will then be taxed by 27%. What is wrong with that? We know that South Africans do not have a disciplined culture of saving. The government has to do something to make sure that our citizens are well taken care of, after having worked hard. The ANC will definitely support this Bill. Thank you. [Applause.]
Question put: That the Bill be read a first time.
Question agreed to (Democratic Alliance dissenting).
Bill accordingly read a first time.