Hon Deputy President, hon Deputy Speaker, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, hon members, fellow South Africans, this is another budget prepared by the ANC, one of broken promises. At the outset we know that this budget is predicted to come in at a deficit of 4% of the gross domestic product, GDP. This is not a budget in the interest of working South African citizens. It is not a budget for jobs. It is a budget that confirms the dismal economic and fiscal management of the ANC-led government.
Ahead of the Budget Vote, the Treasury spent millions of rands in taxpayers' money on the political propaganda campaign that included dishing out food parcels and T-shirts. The campaign included promising South Africans a better future for all. These broken promises were the broken promise to provide electricity for all, the broken promise of a better life for all and the broken promise of jobs to lower the unemployment rate.
In May this year, unemployment was above 1994 levels. The promise to lower the cost of living was also a broken promise, with hikes in fuel prices, electricity prices and interest rates. With the sluggish economy, the promise of a thriving economy has also been broken. Debt now sits at R1 590 billion.
As far as jobs are concerned, the ANC-led government, instead of admitting that it did not have all the answers before the election and that it has broken its promises, continues to let the people of South Africa down. They are a government in denial.
When the ANC-led government was elected into power in 1994, the unemployment rate was 20%. Now, 20 years later, it is 25,2%, still without any constructive plan to create jobs and it is getting worse. The 2014 budget now confirms that Treasury does not expect the unemployment rate to decrease to the level it was in 1994. This will leave the President short on his promise to decrease the unemployment rate. According to the National Development Plan, NDP, achieving full employment, decent work and sustainable livelihoods is the only way to improve living standards to ensure a dignified existence for all South Africans - black, coloured, Indian and white.
The NDP further states that to gain employment, the country needed to have created about 11 million jobs since 2011. Three years have gone by; in fact, we've been experiencing continuous job losses. The NDP also states that the economy would have to grow by about 5,4% on average over the next 20 years to achieve this target. It is currently growing at under 2%.
The objectives for employment and growth, as stated in Chapter 3 of the NDP, is that the unemployment rate should fall from 25% in 2010 to 6% in 2030. Is this going to happen? The DA does not think so. The objective for the proportion of the population with an income below the poverty measure of R418 per day should have fallen from 39% in 2009 to zero in 2030. At the current trajectory, it is not going to happen.
An optimistic programme, the New Growth Path, is government's key programme to take the country onto a higher growth trajectory. A critical complement between the New Growth Path and the NDP is the need to lower costs in the economy, but we are continually faced with ever increasing fuel prices, electricity tariffs, water prices, interest rates, etc.
After 20 years the ANC-led government still has no realistic plan for jobs or for supporting employment. The government does not want to accept that unemployment is a problem. The unemployment rate amongst the youth aged 15 to 34 increased from 32,7% to 36,1% between 2008 and 2014. This is unacceptable. And this ANC-led government just doesn't have a solution.
Unlike the DA, the ANC-led government has no plan to assist the unemployed and address the increasing rate of unemployment. In contrast, Minister Gordhan, the DA has a policy and a plan to grow the economy and create 6 million jobs. [Interjections.] Minister Gordhan is the one who commented.
The only party that has a plan to support South Africans to get jobs is the DA, because, unlike its opponents, we actually care for all who live in South Africa.
As far as economic damage is concerned, after 20 years, the ANC-led government has failed South Africans. The current state of affairs is a much slower growth than the 8% economic growth that the DA offers. Business and private investment continue to decline. This, combined with a forecast average annual unemployment rate of 25,2%, paints a bleak picture of a very weak domestic economy over the next year. The ANC-led government has failed to present any substantial economic strategy. All we get are promises. The Budget, including the bleak outlook for the domestic economy over the next year, shows that the government's approach is wrong, but it hopes that nobody will notice. The DA opposition will have a very different approach. The only party with a policy and a plan for the whole economy and for jobs of the future is the DA.
Despite the gloomy outlook for the economy next year, the President, in his state of the nation address, said it's going to be a good year, because the ANC has a good story to tell. The problem is that the story only has a beginning and no end. The economy that has slowed down, with a higher unemployment rate, is not good for the country, and the citizens are the ones who are affected.
The President must start seeing what is happening to our country. He needs to start seeing how businesses and the people of our country are suffering. The damage done to the economy has caused the citizens of the country to incur increased debt in order to survive.
With regard to corruption, according to the NDP, South Africa suffers from high levels of corruption that undermine the rule of law and hinder the state's ability to affect development and socioeconomic transformation. Although the entire country is harmed by corruption, the cost falls most heavily on the poor through the impact on the quality and accessibility of public services. The NDP further asserts that in the democratic era, several significant steps have been taken to counter corrupt practices. These include a number of oversight institutions, established in terms of Chapter 9 of the Constitution. These institutions, although the NDP agrees that they have played an important role in combating corruption, are prevented by this government to do their jobs effectively.
In terms of some economic numbers prior to the global crisis, the stock of public debt stood at R525 billion. It has now risen to R1,590 billion and is expected to reach more than R2 trillion. In the first three months of 2014, the South African economy shrank by 0,6%. In May 2014, the Reserve Bank revised its economic growth forecast for South Africa down to 2,1% from 2,6%. The forecast for 2015 remains unchanged at 3,1%, and growth in 2016 is expected to average 3,4%.
The DA's aim is to grow the economy by 8% in 2025. With the right combination of policies we could create 6 million jobs and reduce unemployment to 11%. At 8% economic growth, we can double the national budget. This means that there will be more money for things like housing, basic services, education, infrastructure and small business support.
To conclude, South Africans will have a clear choice in the elections in 2016. The ANC will govern for a higher cost of living and broken promises. [Time expired.] [Applause.]