Apart from listening to the debate on the family (see my previous blog post), earlier on Saturday I seconded a motion (proposed by Dean Macpherson) promoting enterprise, freedom and opportunity. Here it is below. I'm pleased to say the motion was carried.
The Democratic Alliance recognises that unemployment
and poverty remain significant challenges to a large proportion of our people.
Currently, 36% of South Africans are unemployed and 20%
are living in extreme poverty. Since Jacob Zuma became President in 2009,
1.4 million additional South Africans have become unemployed. Our economy has also
experienced depressed economic growth over this period, with
the current growth forecast for 2015 only being 2%.
The DA believes that:
• As the party of
freedom, opportunity and enterprise, it is our responsibility to foster an
entrepreneurial culture;
• Significant job
creation in our economy can be driven by the formation and growth of new
businesses;
• South Africa’s economy
can thrive in an environment unburdened by restrictive regulations and red
tape;
• Businesses should be
incentivised through innovative tax and other stimulatory measures so as to
create new jobs to bring unemployment, and thus inequality, down from today’s
unacceptable levels;
Resolves that a DA government will:
• Grow
our way to economic prosperity through increased incentives for manufactures,
entrepreneurs, building a capable state that can achieve 8% growth;
• Reduce
the regulatory burden on businesses, with an aim to encourage the formation of
new businesses, and spur the growth and success of existing enterprises;
• Cut
corruption from R30 billion per year and use these savings to reduce tax;
• Establish
a national guarantee/ capital venture fund to draw the private sector and state
together in support of new businesses.
Proposer: Dean Macpherson, Seconder: Toby Chance
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