Chairperson, I thank the hon Minister for the answer. We are all aware of what the budget was for her department. I would also like to pop the question. Your department overspent its total budget whereas you achieved only 40% of the target that you set for yourself.
The Auditor-General clearly indicated that your accounting officer did not take appropriate steps to prevent overspending. This resulted in R35 million in irregular expenditure. The bulk of this relates to overspending on compensations. Will the Minister explain what prompted the overspending on salaries, and how has this helped the department to deliver on tangible benefits to vulnerable groups? I thank you.
The MINISTER OF WOMEN, CHILDREN AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES: Chairperson, according to the Auditor-General we have delivered 60% of our target, and not 40%. The hon member will remember that with the small budget that we had we were able to employ about 50% of the staff required. This means that the department is running on a skeleton staff. Therefore, it becomes difficult for the department to deliver. However, because of the support we receive from National Treasury, we'll be able to add more people to the department and I'm sure we will be able to improve on delivery. Yes, the accounting officer has received a very negative report from the Auditor-General. I have written and asked her to put in writing her responses to the Auditor-General's report. I've sent her a letter as she is also implicated in investigations that have been conducted relating human resource issues.
I have already answered the issue of overspending and also what steps the department has taken to avoid this in future. I thank you, Chairperson.