Hon Chair, hon Minister - there's no Minister here, but in absentia - hon members, the Bill originally seeks to amend the Cross-Border Road Transport Act of 1998 so as to insert the table of contents, to amend and insert certain definitions, and also to arrange for the outsourcing of certain levies and to collect tolls on behalf of the SA National Road Agency Ltd.
Furthermore, the Bill seeks to institute a variety of other measures, which I won't mention, and to provide for the matters connected therewith.
The Bill, when scrutinised by our colleagues in the National Assembly, appeared, on the face of it, to be of a simple procedural nature, but turned out to be much more complex. An in-depth scrutiny resulted in a number of fundamental adjustments and amendments effecting, amongst others, that the Cross-Border Road Transport Agency should not be seen as a toll- collecting functionary of the SA National Road Agency Ltd, but that such arrangements should be dealt with through some memorandum of understanding or bilateral arrangement; that both the SA National Road Agency Ltd and the Cross-Border Road Transport Agency should stick to their individual mandates; and, finally, that the original clause 16(d) could be seen as unconstitutional and a hindrance to seamless cross-border transport and could clash with permits issued by the operating licence boards for taxis servicing border routes. The clause was consequently removed.
The Select Committee on Public Services further scrutinised both the Bill and the National Assembly portfolio committee amendments, and satisfied itself of the desirability of the remaining amendments and concluded that no further additions or amendments could be put before this House.
The select committee, therefore, supports the Bill as amended by the National Assembly and calls on the NCOP to support the Cross-Border Road Transport Amendment Bill before us. And just for the benefit of hon Kgoshi, I can add that my party, the DA, also supports the Bill. I thank you. [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
Bill agreed to in accordance with section 75 of the Constitution.