PARLIAMENT has taken a step towards giving its MPs power to amend the national budget following the establishment of a budget office to advise on how to conduct oversight over fiscal policy.
National Assembly speaker Max Sisulu yesterday pointed out that the parliamentary budget office, which has been 10 years in the making, is simply an advisory body without any legislative or executive powers.
He said it was established after consensus was reached by political parties on how it will function. "Clearly it will be independent and will assist Parliament to play an important role. The process of establishing the budget office started actually in the second Parliament . It has taken quite a while," he said.
The office, which he hopes will be fully functional before the expiry of the current parliament next year, will advise the finance and appropriations committees of both houses of Parliament on how best to scrutinise money bills and conduct proper oversight over the budget.
In terms of The Money Bills Amendment Procedure and Related Matters Act, Parliament can make amendments to the budget and the division of revenue between government departments and provinces.
Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan will present his budget this afternoon and, once the act is fully in practice, MPs can reject the budget completely or make changes they deem fit if they feel money is not being allocated to correct priorities.
Parliament sought advice from the Development Bank of Southern Africa on the establishment of the office which will consist of 12 employees. Their initial mandate will be to advise the four parliamentary committees that deal directly with finance and appropriations but, once fully functional, it will assist all parliamentary committees on how to scrutinise the budgets of departments that account to them.
Secretary to Parliament Michael Coetzee said the budget office would report directly to the speaker and the chairman of the National Council of Provinces. He said the committees responsible for finance and administration in both houses of parliament would have to make recommendations to executive authority on who best to appoint to man the office.
Although he did not indicate how much was needed to run the office, Sisulu promised there would be money to fund it.
MPs now able to amend budget
PARLIAMENT has taken a step towards giving its MPs power to amend the national budget following the establishment of a budget office to advise on how to conduct oversight over fiscal policy.
National Assembly speaker Max Sisulu yesterday pointed out that the parliamentary budget office, which has been 10 years in the making, is simply an advisory body without any legislative or executive powers.
He said it was established after consensus was reached by political parties on how it will function. "Clearly it will be independent and will assist Parliament to play an important role. The process of establishing the budget office started actually in the second Parliament . It has taken quite a while," he said.
The office, which he hopes will be fully functional before the expiry of the current parliament next year, will advise the finance and appropriations committees of both houses of Parliament on how best to scrutinise money bills and conduct proper oversight over the budget.
In terms of The Money Bills Amendment Procedure and Related Matters Act, Parliament can make amendments to the budget and the division of revenue between government departments and provinces.
Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan will present his budget this afternoon and, once the act is fully in practice, MPs can reject the budget completely or make changes they deem fit if they feel money is not being allocated to correct priorities.
Parliament sought advice from the Development Bank of Southern Africa on the establishment of the office which will consist of 12 employees. Their initial mandate will be to advise the four parliamentary committees that deal directly with finance and appropriations but, once fully functional, it will assist all parliamentary committees on how to scrutinise the budgets of departments that account to them.
Secretary to Parliament Michael Coetzee said the budget office would report directly to the speaker and the chairman of the National Council of Provinces. He said the committees responsible for finance and administration in both houses of parliament would have to make recommendations to executive authority on who best to appoint to man the office.
Although he did not indicate how much was needed to run the office, Sisulu promised there would be money to fund it.
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