Cape Town mayor weighs in on tariff ruling

Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis says it would be detrimental to Cape Town's progress if the city shrinks its capital budget following the latest High Court ruling.

Last week, a full bench of the Western Cape High Court declared the city's tariff structure unlawful for linking service charges, such as city-wide cleaning, to property values.

Amid calls by Stop City of Cape Town founder and GOOD Party PR Councillor, Sandra Dickson, for the city to refund residents, the mayor said the judgment is not retrospective.

He said compromising Cape Town's infrastructure plan would undermine the city’s future.

"The court was clear that this is only forward-looking, not backwards-looking. I really must chuckle at the commentator saying that we've been withholding money from residents, whatever it was she was saying. So, when I hear the PR councillor saying we must cut our capital budget, I think that's an appalling suggestion. We have to work on alternatives that do not compromise the future success and functionality of the city."

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