Thank you, Speaker. Minister, the issue of the cost of regulatory compliance has been raised in the past. It was again raised in the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement where it was stated that, "a successful job creation strategy needs to address constraints that make it more difficult to open and expand small businesses".
I thank you, Minister, for your indication that the new Companies Act and regulations will address this issue. Clearly, small businesses face onerous regulatory burdens with the cost of regulatory compliance at about 8% of total turnover compared with less than 1% for large businesses.
Minister, the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement also recommends that all new laws should be subject to regulatory impact assessment to review their effect on small businesses. The ACDP agrees with this view and wishes to know whether the economic cluster will consider this proposal, given the very important role that small business plays in job creation in the country. Thank you.