#Budget2019: Postive signs, but government spend reduction not enough - Outa

Outa's CEO gives his take on Mboweni's budget speech and predicts that e-tolls are on their way out.

Chief Executive Officer of the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa), Wayne Duvenage says while Finance Minister Tito Mboweni's 2019 budget speech is fair, government spending should have been reduced a lot more.

Mentioning treasury's medium term spending plans, Mboweni highlighted some of government’s priorities by detailing key interventions it's taking to reduce compensation spending.

He said members of Parliament and provincial legislatures and executives at public entities will not be receiving a salary increase this financial year.

I think they wanted to go a little harder, especially on reducing government spend. They indicated that is a route they are taking but not enough, we believe that the expenditure ceiling should have been brought down a lot more through some ruthless reduction.

Wayne Duvenage, CEO - Outa

On e-tolls, Duvenage maintains the government's hardline stance has changed.

Reading between the lines, says the Outa chief, the e-toll system is being reviewed and will probably not be around much longer.

He knows that the e-tolls is not a successful user pays and that there are other user pays mechanisms and that trying to find solutions means that they are now contemplating the end of e-tolls. He didn't say it but that is what you could read in that speech.

Wayne Duvenage, CEO - OUTA

Click on the link below to hear more from Duvenage....

This article first appeared on 702 : #Budget2019: Postive signs, but government spend reduction not enough - Outa

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