Chairperson, the hon member will remember that when we passed the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act in 2002, there was a programme that kicked in in 2004. In 2004 we drew up for ourselves a 10-year programme to ensure that living conditions, particularly of mineworkers, were improved, that we eliminated the hostel system, and that mining companies would build houses, where appropriate, for mineworkers. That was a 10-year programme. We do not expect that there will be any single-sex hostels in 2014, and we expect that housing will improve. I must say to the hon member that a lot of that has happened in some companies. There are companies that are lagging behind, but the deadline is very firm. The date, 1 May 2014, is the final date by which this should be implemented.
With regard to the issue of housing incentives, this is a matter that surfaced especially when we looked into the areas of Rustenburg and Marikana, where the mining companies have implemented some of these incentives whilst knowing that they are supposed to be providing decent accommodation for mineworkers. We will not relent on this question and this is a matter that we take very seriously. The mining companies know that the law provides for them, as part of their licence conditions, to ensure that they provide decent living conditions to mine workers.
With regard to other working conditions of mineworkers, I think that we as Parliament have taken steps on this, and the Presidential Package is also looking into this comprehensively. I am confident that we will turn this around. We have some time to look into what needs to be done. Thank you very much, hon member. [Applause.]