News 08:00

BULLETIN 29 October 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# There are calls for Enoch Godongwana to focus on  economic growth in the budget
# Minister George calls for increased funding to tackle climate change
# And Israel bans the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees

# The GOOD Party has called on Finance minister Enoch Godongwana to demonstrate his commitment to the Government of National Unity’s goals and prioritise inclusive economic growth. The party emphasises the need for credible fiscal reforms and warns against further cuts to vital services like education and health. They stress that the Social Relief of Distress Grant should evolve into a Basic Income Grant to address escalating poverty and living costs in South Africa. The Medium Term Budget Policy Statement will be delivered on Wednesday.

Meanwhile Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis calls on the minister to halt budget cuts affecting housing grants and other pro-poor funding for municipalities. The mayor urged Godongwana to protect grants for housing and informal settlement upgrades and boost infrastructure funding to support low-income communities. He says these funds are essential to support the city’s growth and enhance residents’ quality of life: 

# Forestry, Fisheries, and Environment minister Dion George emphasised the need for more predictable and accessible funding to combat climate change. Speaking at the National Stakeholder Consultation, George said that South Africa will advocate for a new global climate finance target of 23-trillion-rand annually at COP29. He said that South Africa aims to promote new financial models that support decarbonisation efforts:

# Israel’s parliament has voted to ban the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees which provides essential services for Palestinian refugees. The controversial ban could impact the education, food, healthcare, and livelihoods of millions of Palestinians who depend on the agency.  The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has previously warned Israel that passing the legislation could have implications under US law and US policy. Israel has long sought to dismantle the UN body, arguing that some of its employees are affiliated with Hamas and that its schools teach hate against Israel.

# Soccer: Manchester United has immediately started the search for a new head coach after sacking Erik ten Hag yesterday. This followed the English club’s worst start to a Premier League season in 35 years, leaving them 14th on the log. Legendary forward and assistant coach, fellow Dutchman Ruud van Nistelrooy, will fill Ten Hag’s position on an interim basis and is seen as a contender to succeed him. Others touted as favourites are former Chelsea manager Graham Potter of England and Brentford manager Thomas Frank of Denmark.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-70-cents and the euro at 19-rand-14-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-96-cents and Bitcoin trades at 71-thousand-90-dollars-20-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-751-dollars-3-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 75-dollars-91-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….