House Chairperson, the accessibility and affordability of banking services have been the subject of many a debate in our developing country. Despite the many challenges that cannot be ignored and concerns that one might raise, the principles of the South African Postbank Bill, which will provide basic banking services at affordable rates and which will be accessible through post offices in almost every town and village of South Africa, could fill an enormous gap in the unbanked sector of our society.
We must remember that it has been calculated that up to 12 million people are in the unbanked sector, especially poor people and those residing in rural areas. Cope therefore supports the Bill, but we want to raise some concerns.
We believe that state intervention that compels banks to break economic rules and procedures, that provides uneconomic and high-risk services and that is self-destructive will lead to more taxpayer money having to prop up the Postbank. Talk of the nationalisation of banks, which has recently been mooted by some elements in the tripartite alliance, is therefore very irresponsible. We trust that the hon Manuel and Minister Gordhan will be able to explain to their vociferous young partners in Durban that that would be a recipe for disaster. Therefore, Cope believes that ... [Interjections.]