Chairperson, the 1998 Inherited Debt Relief Act 54 of 1998 authorised and effectively cleared the inherited debt of provinces affected by the expenditure of the former Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda and Ciskei, the TBVC states, while the Finance Act, Act 35 of 2000 authorised the overexpenditure of former regional structures, the former Transvaal, in order to clear the relevant account, but the inherited debt of the Western Cape was not cleared.
This inherited debt was expenditure incurred by former TBVC states, Ciskei, as well as parts of the old regional structures; namely, the Cape Provincial Administration and the House of Representatives or the Department of Education and Culture. This is the money bill that authorises the overexpenditure to facilitate the accounting process necessary to clear the overdrawn accounts of the former Cape Province structures in line with similar arrangements in the 1998 Inherited Debt Relief Act and the 2000 Finance Act of 2000.
During the public hearings the committee was briefed about the implications of the Bill, namely that there are no cash flow implications; there is no impact on general government debt; and that there are also no interest implications. The Select Committee on Finance also considered the submissions that were made. Having applied its collective mind, the committee recommends the passing of this Bill. Thank you.
Debate concluded.
Bill agreed to in accordance with section 75 of the Constitution.