Godongwana: Not approving entire budget by end of August could ‘close govt’

CAPE TOWN - Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana said not approving the entire budget by the end of August could cause problems for the government’s ability to spend and perform certain functions.

Godongwana briefed the media in Parliament on Wednesday, shortly before tabling a revised budget without a value-added tax (VAT) increase, after two failed attempts to adopt it.

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Godongwana said parties in a coalition government are expected to disagree sometimes on issues like the budget.

He said the Government of National Unity (GNU)’s first budget has also taught them lessons on how complex the process to amend a budget is and should be.

“It has got to be cumbersome because the manner in which it was tailored, it was tailored in such a manner that it should not be easy to just sit down and say we’re amending the budget. It’s got to be difficult because people have to comply with what Treasury has to comply with.”

He also emphasised the need to process the budget and the money bills in a reasonable time, or departments won’t be able to spend most of their budgets due to legal regulations.

“If we don’t finish the budget by the end of August, we are going to experience what the Americans experience, which is closing government.”

But director general Duncan Pieterse said the Appropriation Act and Public Finance Management Act allow limited government spending without an adopted budget, but it can’t include new expenditure.