Chairperson,
I dedicate this speech to the thousands of Iranian protesters who were killed by the despotic Iranian government and, in particular, to a 26-year old protester, Erfan Soltani, who is due to be executed tomorrow after a very flawed process with no appeal, and yet there is nothing said in this House about this travesty of justice. At the very least, the Iranian Ambassador should be called in, and a call should be made to stop these unjudicial executions which continue to take place.
As far as the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) is concerned, the ACDP reiterates our stance that the country is at a crossroads and how we deal with our major trade partners, including the US and the EU, will determine how fast we can grow the economy. How we deal with adversaries of our major trade partners will also be crucial.
We note, however, honourable Minister, that there are a number of green shoots as we enter 2026 with high commodity prices, and with the stock exchange index going through record levels—120,000 points yesterday—reliable electricity, relatively stable public finances and lower interest rates. Fiscal consolidation is starting to bear fruit with a primary budget surplus set to increase. And yes, debt is set to stabilise, but it is still at alarmingly high levels. We as the ACDP have consistently expressed concerns about that and escalating debt service costs, which are starting to come down slightly.
These are positive developments and we need to consider the critical areas for economic growth such as focusing attention on improved logistics through rail and port concessioning. Progress is being made in that regard, Chairperson. Fixing local government service delivery is critical and, lastly, strengthening the criminal justice sector. This is crucial for investment and for business confidence.
One of the biggest challenges, honourable Minister—and you know this yourself—is the lack of sufficient private gross fixed capital investment. Private sector capital investment has slowed significantly. Businesses are still sitting on R1.8 trillion of accumulated cash reserves. If this is unlocked and invested in the economy, we can have far higher economic growth for job creation that is so necessary.
The ACDP believes that there are these glimmers of green shoots and therefore will support the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement.
I thank you.
