Budget 3.0: EFF won't support 'austerity' that cuts funding to critical depts

CAPE TOWN  - The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) says it won’t support an "austerity" that cuts any funding to critical departments like health and education.

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana will deliver the national budget speech at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on Wednesday.

With a value-added tax (VAT) hike no longer on the table, the minister is under pressure to fill a R75-billion budgetary gap over the next three years.

The EFF caucus is in a defiant mood ahead of the budget speech.

The red berets say its proposals of increasing the corporate tax and introducing a wealth and apartheid tax have not found favour with the African National Congress (ANC).

EFF national spokesperson Sinawo Tambo says its clear the GNU's next course of action is to cut spending.

“We are going to do our work in the Standing Finance Committee and those who bare going to support an anti-poor budget that’s going to cut teachers and nurses they are going to be exposed to South Africans because they said they oppose the VAT hike because they are for the poor let’s see now when we get budget cuts where they stand.”

Meanwhile, the two biggest parties in the GNU, the ANC and DA, say they have resolved their budget differences.