Chairperson, I am delighted at this opportunity to participate in a new approach to legislation. I made a suggestion 18 months ago to my Chief Whip, and the consummation of that is reflected here. I think it gives us an opportunity to look at the policy implications rather than going in hugger-mugger fashion to a portfolio committee. Or in fact, nobody realises the policy. It comes back to a Second Reading, and what we have is a Minister and others just telling us what the Bill states, rather than the policy behind it. I think it is important that we look at the technical measure and look at the enormous policy implications.
First of all, there has been agreement with the unions, government and Transnet, which itself is a victory, because pension issues are enormously sensitive throughout the world. It is a deferred salary. In the United States they want to privatise pensions. In Europe, because of extensive birth control and fewer births, they have problems with bringing back older people into service. The British are changing their pension laws to make it compulsory for people to work beyond 65.
Here we have, in a situation where the cost of pensions is a burden on the state, a rational, open, transparent, agreed-upon arrangement. I think this is a triumph for the kind of democracy we want to build, because I think the state could have used its power, particularly because of the background of the pension system in South Africa, to impose a solution. Because the background is - and I speak as a former school teacher, many, many years ago - that there was no pension for blacks, or there was a discriminatory pension for blacks.
It is a great tribute to the ANC that, very quietly, and in an orderly fashion, they have brought back the benefits of those who were excluded from the pension scheme. People who work for Transnet are, apart from mining, in one of the most dangerous areas in the world, the most unsafe areas in the world, and recognising the right and entitlement to pensions is recognition by all of us of this fact. We are saluting the older people who have contributed to the building of South Africa.
It is a pleasure therefore to take part in this opening approach to a new style of legislation. We shall allow people who are not in the portfolio committees to do this - I apologise to people who have been in the portfolio committees for usurping their right, but I think this is Parliament asserting its authority to say that policy issues must always be discussed before the Bill goes in a quiet, leisurely way to the portfolio committees. I thank you.
The ACTING DEPUTY SPEAKER (Ms C-S Botha): Thank you very much, hon Asmal. Is there anybody else? If not, hon Minister Erwin, you may respond.