Hon Deputy Speaker, His Excellency the Deputy President, hon Speaker, this Budget Vote not only affords us the opportunity of looking at figures, but also at the entire character, challenges and achievements of our Parliament. The question is: What kind of Parliament do we want? Do we want the kind of Parliament that encourages debate or one that just goes through the motion where debate is replaced by the mere reading of speeches for purposes of recording?
Is our Parliament of relevance to the immediate needs of our people? Are the people's issues regularly debated in the form of snap debates and members' motions? We have seen few of these kinds of debates. Another question is this: Are the laws that we pass in the best interests of our people? These are some of the important issues that we should be considering in this debate.
Let me go back to the question of the character of this Parliament. With the advent of our democracy, the South African Parliament lost the protective principle of parliamentary supremacy. According to this principle, a court of law could not pronounce on any law passed by Parliament. Hence Parliament then was able to pass some of the most draconian laws ever seen.
This principle, however, was replaced by constitutional supremacy, which has meant that our laws are now subject to constitutional scrutiny. Laws that are inconsistent with the Constitution may now be struck down by our courts. This is a very important check and balance and therefore the argument that dismisses the role of our courts as being interventionist must be dismissed.
The recent victory in the Constitutional Court of the hon Dr Ambrosini, MP, paved the way for private members now being able to introduce Bills in the National Assembly without suffering what some people call the "tyranny of the majority" at the committee stage.
Parliament remains the highest legislative body in the country and as such requires certain standards of decorum which at times seem to be sorely lacking. Simple things like members arriving for plenary wearing golf t- shirts and some in tackies and track suits should not be allowed. [Applause.] The IFP would support calls for a dress code for the National Assembly.
Another worrisome trend is the seemingly adversarial relationship between Parliament and the executive. It would seem that the executive sometimes sees Parliament as an obstacle or an impediment rather than a very necessary check and balance. Ministers are often absent from a plenary when members' statements are being delivered. When they are present, they usually prefer to attack or talk down to members rather than engage in constructive dialogue.
Another concern is that not all our submitted questions are answered by the executive. In the IFP alone, 38% of our questions for 2013 remain unanswered. This is unacceptable. We hope this will improve and that from now on we will see full participation and active engagement from the side of the executive.
Members' facilities is one of our other concerns. We therefore call for a standardisation of privileges for previous Members of Parliament, which is similar or equal to that of previous Ministers. An example is that of a previous Member of Parliament who is entitled to just four economy domestic air travel tickets per year, whilst a Minister gets 72 tickets. This matter has been raised by the IFP over the past number of years and we hope that in the interest of all members it will be finalised as a matter of urgency.
The recent opening of the parliamentary Budget Office under the very capable leadership of Professor Jahed is very welcome indeed. This essential structure will add immense value to this institution. However, we must mention that for every cent passed by this Parliament there must be oversight, as section 55(2) of the Constitution enjoins, including oversight over Budget Vote 2, which we currently do not have.
Other initiatives such as the recent launch of the new parliamentary mobile website must also be commended. Parliament must be accessible to the people wherever they may be. The use of social media platforms increases access whilst reducing the cost associated with such communication.
Review of the National Assembly Rules is long overdue. Some of these Rules belong to a different era and we are glad to see that progress is being made in this regard.
Parliamentary training for members is necessary and welcome, because not every member of this House has the privilege of having a legal background. Therefore recent initiatives such as the one on the institution of legislative training for members must be highly commended. We would like to see this kind of training at the start of every Parliament, which could then be carried out and added to through the five-year period.
In conclusion, we support this Budget Vote and take this opportunity to wish you and your staff all of the very best for the ensuing year. I thank you. [Applause.]