Battle to slash staggering R25bn bill for consultants, travel and catering
8 October 2015
The Minister of Finance, Nhlanhla Nene, is battling to cut spending on consultants, travel and catering, which cost a staggering R25 billion in 2013/14.
The former Minister of Finance, Pravin Gordhan, introduced “belt-tightening measures” during his Medium Term Budget Statement in 2013.
The belt-tightening measures were aimed at slashing the staggering R25 billion spent on consultants, travel and catering in 2013/14.
National Treasury’s “cost containment measures” were subsequently outlined in National Treasury Instruction 01 of 2013/2014.
The belt-tightening measures were aimed at all departments, constitutional institutions and public entities.
Up until now National Treasury has not provided a progress report on the implementation of the cost containment measures announced in 2013.
However, replying to a parliamentary question the Minister revealed that total amount spent by departments on consultants, travel and catering was reduced from R25 billion in 2013/14 to R23 billion in 2014/15.
The savings by departments on consultants, travel and catering was broken down as follows:
-a saving of R364 million, or 3% of total spending on consultants by departments in 2014/15 compared to 2013/14;
-a saving of R571 million, or 6% of total spending on travel and subsistence by departments in 2014/15 compared to 2013/14; and
-a saving of R1,075 billion, or 47% of total spending on catering, entertainment and venue rental by departments in 2014/15 compared to 2013/14.
We should welcome the fact that departments saved R2 billion on consultants, travel and catering by departments in 2014/15 compared to 2013/14.
However, this only represents an 8% saving on the total amount spent by departments on consultants, travel and catering in 2014/15 compared to 2013/14.
What this means is that National Treasury barely made a dent in cutting spending on consultants, travel and catering by departments in 2014/15 compared to 2013/14.
What this suggests is that some departments are resisting the implementation of cost containment measures and are failing to comply with National Treasury Instruction 01 of 2013/2014.
I will, therefore, be writing to the Minister of Finance, Nhlanhla Nene, requesting him to provide me with a breakdown of the savings of each department on consultants, travel and catering in 2014/15 compared to 2013/14.
We need to identify the big spending “bad apples” which are refusing to tighten their belts and deal with them in Parliament.
Statement issued by David Maynier MP, DA Shadow Minister of Finance, 8 October 2015
