Special Pension Fund Amendment Bill: postponement; Committee Programme

Meeting report

FINANCE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE
10 October 2005
SPECIAL PENSION FUND AMENDMENT BILL: POSTPONEMENT; COMMITTEE PROGRAMME

Cradock ANC Office Submission
Group of Former Umkhonto Wesizwe Submission
Draft Committee Programme

National Treasury delegation: Mr L Wort, Chief Operations Officer: Office of the Director-General; Mr D Jurgens, Head: Special Pensions and Ms J Ferreira, Director: Legal Services.

SUMMARY
The Committee was unable to secure all the written submission on the Special Pension Fund Amendment Bill because Parliament had been in recess until 10 October, and the decision was taken to postpone its hearings on the Bill until all the submissions had been received. The Chairperson led the Committee through its programme for the remainder of the year.

MINUTES
Introductory remarks by Chairperson
The Chair informed Members that this was his maiden meeting as chairperson of the Committee, and expressed his appreciation for the appointment.

Special Pension Fund Amendment Bill
The Chair informed Members that it had been very difficult for the Committee Secretary to co-ordinate the delivery of written submissions on the Bill to Members because Parliament had been in recess and Members had been in their constituencies. The Committee had thus not had sight of any written submissions on the Bill. He requested that a co-ordinated approach be followed at provincial level to gain the inputs of all interested parties on the Bill. He thus proposed that the Committee’s hearings on the Bill be postponed until such time as the Committee had received all the written submissions on the Bill.

Mr M Johnson (ANC) asked when the submissions would be considered.

The Chair stated that the date would be fixed at the Committee’s next meeting.

Mr Wort requested that the Committee process the Bill as expeditiously as possible, in order to allow National Treasury sufficient time to consider any proposed amendments and finalise the Bill. He stated that it would be most beneficial if the Committee could process the Bill by the end of October.

The Chair assured National Treasury that the Committee would process the Bill as thoroughly and as expeditiously as possible.

Ms B Hogan (ANC) informed the Committee that she had spoken to the Speaker of the National Assembly regarding her continued participation in the processing of the Bill, as she herself was the recipient of a special pension. She requested the Speaker to provide written guidance in this matter, but she had not yet heard any response.

The Chair stated that the Committee Secretary would follow up on the matter.

Committee Programme
The Chair took Members through the Committee’s draft programme for the final session of Parliament in 2005.

Ms Hogan expressed her concern with the overloaded Committee programme for the remainder of the year, and questioned whether any of the items on the programme could possibly be postponed for consideration in the new year.

The Chair stated that the Committee would have to consider this.

The meeting was adjourned