Mr Speaker, last week the hon Deputy President said in the House that the major obstacle to the implementation of the youth wage subsidy, which you promised to implement two years ago, was the resistance of the unions, and Cosatu in particular.
Mr President, it is a matter of fact that, if government had implemented the youth wage subsidy in April 2010, nearly a quarter of a million young South Africans would by now have had the opportunity to move from poverty into gainful employment. A policy deadlock between Cosatu and the government has kept these young people out of work, and was listed by ratings agency Moody's ...