The Portfolio Committee noted and appreciated that the budget allocations made by Treasury must be seen in the context of a very tight fiscal environment. The Portfolio Committee noted the budget guidelines issued to the Department and the entities and the emphasis by Treasury that there is no additional funding available and that additional funding requirements would need to be resourced through reprioritisation within departmental allocations or by sourcing such funds from Departments that do not perform optimally. It was further noted that the Treasury's guidance in terms of requests for additional funds stipulated that such requests could only be favourably considered where it would result in stimulation of the economy and where it is associated with the infrastructure development priorities of government.