Mr President, it is a matter of fact that, if the government had implemented the youth wage subsidy policy in April 2010, nearly a quarter of a million young South Africans would by now have had the opportunity to move from poverty to employment.
A policy deadlock between Cosatu and the government has kept them out of work and was listed by ratings agency Moody's as a major reason for yesterday's downgrade of South Africa's debt outlook. Mr President, this cannot go on. How do you plan to meet the new deadline of 1 April 2012 for the implementation of the youth wage subsidy policy?