Treasury is concerned about the wide and unfettered powers granted to the minister of trade and industry to prescribe debt intervention measures in a proposed bill providing debt relief to overburdened consumers. The proposed debt relief could result in the write-off of between R13.2bn and R20bn, which is the total debt falling under the debt-extinguishing provisions of the National Credit Amendment Bill. Treasury’s concern about provisions in the bill is shared by the Banking Association SA as well as senior counsel Wim Trengove, who was asked by Parliament’s trade and industry committee to give an opinion on the bill’s constitutionality. According to the National Credit Regulator, the total outstanding gross debtors book of consumer credit for the quarter ended December 2017 was R1.76-trillion. This credit was extended by banks, retailers, nonbank financiers and other credit providers. The committee met on Tuesday to deliberate on the bill, which will provide debt relief in certai...
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