News 11:00

BULLETIN 9 April 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Cosatu urges SARS to continue its efforts to crack down on the illicit tobacco trade
# Business Leadership SA is concerned about the government’s ability to deliver on digital nomad visas
# And Trump wants individual states to determine abortion rights

# Cosatu is urging the South African Revenue Service not to buckle to pressure in its efforts to crack down on the illicit tobacco trade. The Fair-Trade Independent Tobacco Association, representing several smaller tobacco producers, is asking the High Court in Pretoria to interdict Sars from implementing the new warehouse camera rule because it argues it violates the constitutional right to privacy. Cosatu’s Matthew Parks says the illicit tobacco trade is a serious problem for the country:

# Business Leadership South Africa says it is concerned about whether the Department of Home Affairs has the capacity to handle the digital nomad visas. The visa is aimed at foreigners who wish to spend up to three years working remotely in the country. The organisation’s CEO, Busisiwe Mavuso, says government needs a plan on how it will resolve the massive backlog in existing visa applications, as well as ensuring that the systems and processes for the digital nomad visa are efficient.

# The EFF in Gauteng says the findings of Corruption Watch’s latest report are concerning. According to the report, Cape Town, Johannesburg and Tshwane collectively accounted for 71-percent of complaints related to corruption allegations last year. The predominant types of corruption included maladministration, fraud, and procurement irregularities. The EFF’s Dumisani Baleni says particularly alarming is the City of Johannesburg’s handling of municipal waste collection contracts through Pikitup, which saw more than 2.2-billion-rand spent on corrupt agreements:

# Former US president Donald Trump says individual states should decide about abortion rights. Many in his Republican Party had wanted him to back a nationwide ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Twenty-one states have either banned abortion or restricted the procedure between six and 18 weeks into a pregnancy. Trump says he is in favour of exceptions when rape or incest are involved, or the life of the mother is in danger:

# Soccer: Uefa says a final decision on the proposal to increase squad sizes for the upcoming European Championships will be made in the coming weeks. Squads are currently limited to 23 players. The increase in squad size could help reduce the threat of injuries and the intense physical demands placed upon players. Uefa says some coaches who prefer to cap the squad size at 23, have pointed to issues including group management and the increased financial burdens placed upon national associations.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-59-cents and the euro at 20-rand-18-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-52-cents and Bitcoin trades at 70-thousand-857-dollars-39-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-345-dollars-18-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 90-dollars-62-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….