Chairperson and hon members, I'm reading this report on behalf of both the Standing Committee on Appropriations and the Standing Committee on Finance. Section 77 of the South African Constitution empowers Parliament to amend Money Bills. In giving effect to section 77 of the Constitution, Parliament introduced the Money Bills Amendment Procedures and Related Matters Act as an instrument for amending Money Bills. Section 15 of the Money Bills Act establishes a parliamentary budget office, which must be headed by a director. The Money Bills Act prescribes that the director must be appointed by both Houses of Parliament, on the recommendation of the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on Finance.
In order to build an effective Parliament, one that is responsive to the needs of the people, the management of the legislative and oversight programme of Parliament demands capacity, competence and collective action. It is imperative that, as the policy-making process becomes more complex and given the need to allocate limited financial resources to governance policy priorities in an efficient, economical and effective manner, parliamentary committees must be adequately supported, resourced and capacitated.
The Parliamentary Budget Office is one way of enhancing the capacity of the Houses of Parliament and its committees to balance appropriately with the sophistication of the executive. Effective budget management requires the clear and carefully balanced distribution of powers and responsibilities. Parliament has contracted Prof Mohammed Jahed since 2012. He was seconded from the Development Bank of South Africa to assist Parliament in setting up the parliamentary budget office.
Prof Jahed holds a PhD in economics and has experience and expertise in economic development, economic policy formulation and public and development management. He served as a senior economic planning specialist at the Development Bank of South Africa and was chief economist and head of policy.
In its decision on the appointment of the director, the committee took into consideration the substantial interaction that Prof Jahed has had with the different political parties and with individual members, his extensive expertise in public finance and economics and the degree of professionalism with which he has conducted his work over the past 12 months.
Based on the above, the Standing Committee on Appropriations and the Standing Committee on Finance are of the view that Prof Jahed is a suitable candidate to head the parliamentary budget office. In accordance with subsections 15(5)(a) and (b) of the Money Bills Act, the Standing Committee on Appropriations and the Standing Committee on Finance recommend that Prof M I Jahed be appointed as the director of the Parliamentary Budget Office and that the appointment of the director of the Parliamentary Budget Office be subject to agreement to a five-year performance-based renewable contract, with the conditions of service, including salary and allowance, being substantially the same as those of the top rank of the Public Service, as per subsection 15(5)(b) of the Act.
In conclusion, oversight over government finances is an important function of the national legislature and is aimed at enhancing the economical use of public resources.
There was no debate.
Declarations of vote:
Chairperson and colleagues, firstly, let me say that the IFP supports the report and the recommended candidate, Prof Mohammed Jahed. Originally, when we entered into discussion on the appointment of the director of the parliamentary budget office, we were a bit concerned that the process would not be open and transparent. Eventually, good sense prevailed and there was a process that involved interviewing Prof Jahed and ascertaining whether he was indeed the best person for the job. Given his experience and the fact that he established the framework for setting up this office, we saw that he really was the most appropriate candidate for the job. He is well qualified and I am sure he will carry out his duties as required in terms of the Act.
However, I would like to draw the attention of the House to the fact that we met with experts from the United Kingdom, United States and Canada. In these countries, parliamentary budget offices have been established for some time. They placed great emphasis on the impartiality of this office - something we as members of this House have to recognise.
For this office to operate effectively and efficiently, this impartiality and independence must be maintained at all times. The office has to be free from political interference and has to set out the rules of the game so that, at the end of the day, whenever a member of this House has to give input on the Appropriation Bill, we do so on an informed basis. Although it has taken four years to reach the stage, I'm sure this is a significant step in the way we allocate funds to various departments. By and large, it is the executive that decides on allocation within the department. Portfolio committees debate and generally approve the budgets, but at least now we have the budget office to provide information. We must once again make an appeal for this office to be appropriately staffed. We cannot have a budget office with just a director - it has to have the appropriate staff. Staff members must be able to give input so that members of this House can make informed decisions. We support this report and we wish Prof Jahed well in the execution of his task. [Applause.]
House Chairperson, the DA would like to warmly welcome Prof Jahed to the position and we echo the sentiments expressed by the other speakers today. Our only concern and request is that Parliament pays full attention to the capacitation of that office. We have had issues around office space allocated to the budget office. We need to hear firm and concrete plans for sufficient space to be given to the competent Prof Jahed and the - no doubt - competent team that he will appoint.
Secondly, we need to make sure that this budget office complies with the letter of the legislation that establishes it - the Money Bills Act, which, in section 15(3), says:
The Parliamentary Budget Office may undertake research on request by the Houses, other committees or Members of Parliament on matters related to the budget and other Money Bills, subject to capacity.
Access to this office is one of the most critical considerations when you create an effective budget office. That, as the hon Singh said, is the message we got from the international experts on offices such as this. However, provided these factors are taken into account and that Prof Jahed is given the resources he needs to advice us sufficiently on budgetary matters, we are in full support of his appointment. [Applause.]
Chairperson, before I start let me congratulate the secretary of the National Assembly, Mr Xaso, on his birthday today. [Applause.]
It is a well-known and accepted fact that for our development agenda to succeed, we need a contingent of patriots who are equal to the requirements and demands of the current phase. The development of our beloved country, South Africa, cannot be left to survive on sheer luck. The development of South Africa needs patriots capable of fulfilling, to the highest degree, the requirements of the development task of each period. Even the National Development Plan agrees with us that while our country's development requires progress on broad front, building the capability of the state to play a developmental and transformative role is paramount. Hence we support this appointment.
Prof Jahed's vast exposure to the economic sector, his academic qualifications - a PhD in economics - makes him meet the requirements of a fit and proper patriot who is equal to the task. We support this report and we wish him all the best in the execution of this important assignment.
Chairperson, Cope wants to declare its support for Prof Jahed. We support his appointment to this responsible position and we want to wish him well. We also want to say that the task at hand is going to be critical in empowering Members of Parliament, in particular those committees that deal with the Budget.
We hope that this appointment will be supported by sufficient staff and budget to enable us to be effective as Parliament. We support the professor's appointment and wish him well.
Professor M I Jahed appointed as Director of the Parliamentary Budget Office with effect from 4 June 2013, and the Reports of the Standing Committee on Finance and the Standing Committee on Appropriations adopted.