What nasty changes can taxpayers expect in the budget?
One thing taxpayers require is clarity on the future source and cost of energy, Andrew Wellsted tells Amanda Visser
South Africans need clarity and certainty in terms of the energy sector when the finance minister delivers his 2018 budget speech next week Wednesday. Andrew Wellsted, head of Norton Rose Fulbright’s tax team, says the country needs a reliable energy supply, and the future source and cost have become critical. Questions plaguing many taxpayers are whether Eskom will need another bail-out, and what the true costs are of renewable energy and nuclear power. “A lot of people are suggesting that nuclear is part of some sort of corrupt scheme. I do not know the answer to that one, but that is certainly the suggestion,” Wellsted says. A crippled Eskom has recently received a bail-out in the form of a R5bn short-term loan from the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), which is the custodian of public servants’ pension money held in the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF). Wellsted says there has not been a single, clear message from government on several policy matters. “I think in a ti...
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