PRESENTATION TO THE ASSESSMENT PANEL
12 February 2008

STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND MECHANISMS AND RESOURCES ALLOCATED:
1994 - 1999: 1ST DEMOCRATIC PARLIAMENT


STRATEGIC PRIORITIES:

·         ABOLISHMENT OF APARTHEID LEGISLATION;

 

·         DEVELOPMENT OF CONSTITUTION BY CONSTITUTIONAL ASSEMBLY;

 

·         ABOLISHMENT OF SENATE AND ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL COUNCIL OF PROVINCES;

 

·         PRESIDENTIAL REVIEW OF MINISTRIES AND RELATED REVIEW OF PARLIAMENT'S COMMITTEES;

 

·         RESTRUCTURING OF THE ADMINISTRATION TO ALIGN WITH THE NEW REQUIREMENTS.

 

RESOURCE ALLOCATION:

 

DIRECTING AUTHORITY WAS VESTED IN THE SPEAKER OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY AND THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND LATER THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF PROVINCES.

 

UPON ADVICE OF THE JOINT BUDGET COMMITTEE THE BUDGETS WERE DULY ALLOCATED TO THE STRATEGIC PRIORITIES

 

AVERAGE BUDGET

 

THE AVERAGE BUDGET FOR THIS PARLIAMENT WAS APPROXIMATELY R300m per annum.

 

STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND MECHANISMS AND RESOURCES ALLOCATED 999 - 2004: 2ND DEMOCRATIC PARLIAMENT

STRATEGIC PRIORITIES:

 

·         ENHANCED LEVELS OF PUBLIC & INTERNATIONAL PARTICIPATION

 

·         ENHANCED OVERSIGHT ACTIVITIES DUE TO PFMA REFORMS;

 

·         INVESTMENT IN ICT SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGIES.

 

RESOURCE ALLOCATION:

 

·         JOINT RULES COMMITTEE DIRECTS THE CONTROL OF SERVICES;

 

·         FUNDING AND EXPENDITURE DECISIONS VESTED IN THE SPEAKER OF THE NA AND CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP

 

AVERAGE BUDGET:

 

·         THE AVERAGE BUDGET FOR THIS PARLIAMENT WAS APPROXIMATELY R 464m per annum

 

STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND MECHANISMS AND RESOURCES ALLOCATED2004-20093rd DEMOCRATIC PARLIAMENT

STRATEGIC PRIORITIES:

·         BUILD A QUALITY PROCESS OF SCRUTINISING AND OVERSEEING GOVERNMENT ACTION;

 

·         BUILD A PEOPLE'S PARLIAMENT THAT IS RESPONSIVE TO THE NEEDS OF ALL PEOPLE OF SOUTH AFRICA;

 

·         BUILD AN EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE INSTITUTION.

 

RESOURCE ALLOCATION:

 

·         PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT AUTHORITY DIRECTS THE CONTROL OF SERVICES;

 

·         FUNDING AND EXPENDITURE DECISIONS VESTED IN THE SPEAKER OF THE NA AND CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP,

 

·         ACTING JOINTLY AS OUR TREASURY (SEE S3(3) OF THE PFMA)

 

AVERAGE BUDGET:

 

·         THE AVERAGE BUDGET FOR THIS PARLIAMENT IS APPROXIMATELY R 984m per annum.

 

Decision Making

·         Decision making is effected through the Parliamentary Oversight Authority.

 

·         Accordingly the Parliamentary Budget Forum prepares the parliamentary budget and recommends to the Parliamentary Oversight Authority (the authority that interprets and oversees the implementation of policy formulated by the policy-making authority and determines the actual level of services).

 

How the Rules of the Houses have evolved

·         The mandate of the National Assembly is to choose the President; provide a national forum for consideration of issues; pass legislation; and scrutinise and oversee Executive action.

 

·         Rules for the election of the President are the responsibility of the Chief Justice. These rules are in place and available.

 

·         There are various mechanisms in the Rules to consider matters of national interest – these include Member's Statements; motions; debates on matters of public and urgent public importance and statements by Ministers.

 

·         A large part of the Rules deal with the detail of passing legislation as required by the Constitution. The regulatory framework established by the Rules provides details of the passage of different types of legislation through Parliament.

 

·         The Rules also contain various mechanisms to hold the Executive accountable. Committees may call any Minister to account; the House regularly calls Ministers to answer questions, to respond to member's statements and issues raised in debates.

 

INTERNAL COMMITTEES

 

Internal committees which existed up to 2004 were subcommittees of the Joint Rules Committee. With the adoption and implementation of the new governance model, these functions have now been assigned to House Chairpersons.

Mechanisms developed over time to improve quality of debate: NA

·         There are various mechanisms available to initiate debate - these include motions, debates agreed to, by the programme committee (eg IPU), debates to acknowledge national or international days (Youth Day, Women's Day), debates on committee reports, 1st and 2nd reading debates on Bills, debates on matters of public importance and urgent public importance.

 

·         Topics for debates are in practice agreed to by the multi-party Chief Whips Forum before being brought to the Programming Committee. However debates on matters of urgent public importance are requested by a party or a member and are considered by the Speaker, as the very nature of these debates means that they override the Parliamentary Programme.

 

·         In June 2002 the entire Rules on the Question system were revised in an effort to improve the quality of debates. The system of supplementary questions was introduced to afford members an opportunity to engage with replies given by Ministers. In addition the President is required to answer questions in the National Assembly once every quarter.

 

Mechanisms developed over time to improve quality of debate: NCOP

 

·         The National Council of Provinces (NCOP) has attempted to ensure that in its debates, motions, questions, subjects for discussion, the focus is on bringing to the fore the issue of provincial interests. The emphasis is on the Schedule 4 matters (Le. the functional areas of concurrent national and provincial legislative competence) such as Housing, Health Services, Education, Agriculture, Cultural matters and Public Transport.

 

MECHANISMS DEVELOPED TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF DEBATE

 

·         There have been a number of initiatives that have contributed to the improvement of the quality of debate in the NCOP. Firstly, there have been a number of workshops and capacity-building programmes, legal, procedural and technical assistance to NCOP Members and the "Handbook for Permanent Delegates".

 

·         Secondly, the NCOP has been innovative in the way in which it has structured its annual programme. It has for example ensured that Provincial Weeks are scheduled to take place at least twice per year. The programmes of the Provincial Weeks are also prepared and coordinated with the Provincial Legislatures in an increasingly structured and focussed manner.

 

·         The NCOP's very successful programme of "Taking Parliament to the People" has provided an opportunity for its Members to acquire first -hand knowledge of the conditions faced by communities (particularly in rural areas) on a daily basis. The programme usually includes site visits to Health Centres, Schools and Farming Projects. Armed with this information, the Members are able to frame their speeches in debates, their motions, their questions to the Executive with reference to actual circumstances "on the ground" and highlighting the provincial interest. This serves to enhance the quality of debate.

 

MECHANISMS DEVELOPED TO IMPROVE QUESTION TIME

NCOP Rules for the eriod 1997 – 2001

 

·         During the early years of the NCOP, the Rules provided that the time allocated to Questions (for oral reply) was only twenty minutes. Furthermore, the Rules indicated that the time for a reply to a question for oral reply could not exceed 3 minutes.

 

·         In practice this meant that all Ministers who were required to respond to questions in the House, were to be in attendance in the House, but because there was only a very limited twenty-minute period, there was no guarantee that they would all receive an opportunity to respond to their questions.

 

NCOP Rules (for the period 2001 – 2005)

·         In terms of the NCOP Rules that had been adopted as at 28 March 2001, the rules relating to questions had been amended so that the time allocated to Questions had been increased from twenty minutes to one hour (60 minutes). The time for reply to questions was still limited to 3 minutes per reply.

 

NCOP Rules for the period 2005 to date)

·         On 18 November 2005, the Programme Committee of the NCOP decided on a new approach to Questions. The new approach essentially meant that Questions would be dealt with in terms of clusters of Ministers as follows:

 

·         Cluster 1 (Peace and Security)

 

·         Cluster 2 (Social Services and Governance)

 

·         Cluster 3 (Economics)

 

·         In terms of the cluster approach to questions, each Question Day (or session) is focussed on one Cluster only. There is no longer the situation where all Ministers are required to be in attendance to answer questions. The NCOP has adopted the cluster approach together with the guidelines for its implementation.

 

·         In terms of the current Rules

 

·         Rule 247 increases the time allocation for replies to five minutes for supplementary questions of not longer than four minutes.

 

MANNER IN WHCH TOPICS ARE SELECTED FOR DEBATES OF NATIONAL IMPORTANCE

Matters of public importance are provided for in NCOP Rule 84 subsections (1) to (5). The Rules indicate that a member may on any sitting day of the Council request the Chairperson of the Council in writing to allow a matter of public importance to be discussed by the Council.

If the matter affects one or more of the provinces, the Chairperson may grant the request and -

·         place the matter on the Order Paper, or if it is an urgent matter and the Council is sitting, allow the discussion to take place on the day the request is made after having considered the availability of special delegates to participate in the debate;

 

·         allocate a period of time for the discussion; and

 

·         arrange for a Cabinet member, a Deputy Minister, a member of a provincial executive or other person to reply to the debate.

 

·         In practice the Chairperson of the NCOP would usually bring to the attention of the NCOP Programme Committee any requests for debates of national importance that had been received. The Committee meets on a weekly basis. It is chaired by the Chairperson of the NCOP and is attended by the Chief Whip of the NCOP, the Programming Whip, all Provincial Whips and Party Whips and Party Representatives. The Office of the Leader of Government Business is also represented at the meeting and that usually assists in facilitating the attendance and participation of Members of the Executive in the debates, if required.

 

·         Once there is a decision on the holding of the debate, the Chairperson of the NCOP would also send written correspondence to all provincial Speakers and Premiers inviting the legislatures to send special delegates in terms of section 61 (4) of the Constitution to attend and participate in the debate. The Chairperson also sends written correspondence to the Chairperson of the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) inviting organised local government to send representatives to attend and participate in the debate in terms of section 67 of the Constitution.

 

·         In terms of the speakers' list for the debate, all provinces and organised local government would be allocated the same amount of speaking time and political parties would be allocated speaking time on the basis of the party "strength" within the NCOP.

 

·         Depending on the subject matter that is being debated, there have been instances where the debate has been followed by a member of the Council (such as the Chairperson of the NCOP or Chief Whip of the NCOP) moving a motion without notice or a draft resolution related to the subject matter, for adoption by the House in terms of section 65 of the Constitution.

 

MECHANISMS FOR OBTAINING PROVINCIAL MANDATES

·         In order to facilitate communication between the provinces and the National Council of Provinces, a unit has been established in the NCOP called "Municipal and Liaison Section" with the sole objective of ensuring that there is a two way flow of information between provinces and the NCOP.

 

·         One of the instruments used by the NCOP to facilitate information and to ensure that the Council receives provincial mandates on time is the "NCOP Online". The site carries information on bills that are before committees and when such bills will be before the House for debate and adoption.

 

·         The website has proven to be an effective tool of communication with provinces, as they are in a position to track the bills that are before committees of Parliament.

 

·         Draft legislation on Mandates in compliance with section 65(2) of the Constitution has been compiled, which provides that "[a]n Act of Parliament, enacted in accordance with the procedure established by either subsection (1) or subsection (2) of section 76, must provide for a uniform procedure in terms of which provincial legislatures confer authority on their delegations to cast votes on their behalf. "

 

·         This legislation was passed by the NCOP on 22 November 2007, and referred to the National Assembly for concurrence. The objective of the legislation is to provide for a uniform procedure in terms of which provincial legislatures confer mandates on their delegations for purposes of passing legislation.

 

·         The drafting and adoption of the rule on Mandates has been effected. In particular rule 73 of the Council rules, which provides that;

 

" (1) Mandates in respect of proposed legislation before the Council must be-

- official communications from the provincial legislature to its delegation; in writing, which may include electronically transmitted print; and

- in a uniform format as may be prescribed by the Secretary after consultation with the Rules Committee.

(2) The head of a provincial delegation is responsible to communicate the official mandate of the province to the Council."

- The NCOP rules have also been amended to make provision for the six-week legislative cycle in order to afford provinces sufficient time to consider legislation and to confer mandates on their provincial delegates.

 

In particular rule 240 of the Council rules, which provides that;

" (1) All section 76 or 74(1)(2) and (3) Bills should be dealt with in a manner that will ensure that provinces have sufficient time to consider the Bill and confer mandates.

(2) Depending on the substance of the Bill, the period may not exceed six weeks.

(3) In the event that the substance of the Bill requires sufficient time beyond the six- weeks period, the cycle may be extended with the approval of the Chairperson of the Council. "

FUNCTIONING OF THE COMMITTEE SYSTEM

Some of the work of committees includes matters referred by the Presiding Officers for:

 

- Information

- Consideration and report

 

·         Other work is initiated by committees themselves.

 

Programmes of Committees

 

·         Each Committee compiles a programme for the year. These programmes are approved by the office of the House Chairperson for Committees. Once approved, each Committee starts to implement the programme, guided by the Parliamentary Programme.

 

·         If a committee wants to do any activity that is not in its approved programme, it should apply for political approval from the office of the House Chairperson for Committees.

 

·         Committees meet according to their grouping (A-Tuesday; B- Wednesday; C Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday; D- Friday)

 

FUNCTIONING OF THE COMMITTEE SYSTEM

Processing Legislation

·         Parliament sets deadlines for the Executive to introduce legislation in Parliament. There are also deadlines that are given to committees to process legislation referred to it. Each Committee reports weekly on legislation before it.

 

·         When processing legislation Committees facilitate public participation by inviting views of the public. Public hearings are held in or outside Parliament.

 

FUNCTIONING OF THE COMMITTEE SYSTEM

Oversight work

Committees perform oversight over the Executive action on behalf of the House. The committees use the following tools:

·         Committee meetings and public hearings to consider and scrutinise:

 

- Annual Reports and Strategic Plans of Departments;

- State of the Nation Address;

 

- Budget votes;

 

·         Site Visits

 

·         Provincial week (NCDP Committees)

 

·         As a component of the Taking Parliament to the People (NCDP Committees)

 

·         As a component of the sectoral assemblies such as People's Assembly, Women's Parliament, Youth Parliament etc.

 

STAFF SUPPORT PROVIDED TO COMMITTEES

Each committee is provided with the following support staff:

 

·         Committee Secretary: to provide procedural and administrative support;

 

·         Committee Assistant: logistical arrangements and documentation;

 

·         Researcher: research work for the committee

 

·         Content Advisor: to provide strategic advice on content and analysis. This is a new development. Recruitment is in progress.

 

·         Secretary to Chairperson: Administrative support in the office of the Chairperson.

 

DETERMINATION OF BUDGETS ALLOCATED TO COMMITTEES

The Parliamentary Oversight Authority allocates budget to committees. They allocate a round figure to all committees. Then the amount is divided among all committees in consultation with the Chairpersons of Committees.

CHANGES IN THE AREA OF OVERALL RESEARCH AND INFORMATION SUPPORT SINCE 1994

To date, out of the 73 positions, the Research Unit has filled the following:

·         1 Chief Researcher

 

·         7 Senior Researchers (1 vacancy)

 

·         50 Researchers (4 vacancies)

 

·         10 Administrative Assistants

 

·         Each researcher is allocated to a specific committee, with each committee in the NA and the NCOP having at least one researcher.

 

The Enhanced Support to Committees project has also made it possible for the appointment of a second researcher to the following committees:

- PC on Justice (this position is currently being filled)

- SC on Finance

- Standing Committee on Public Accounts

- SC on Security and Constitutional Affairs

- Joint Budget Committee

CHANGES IN THE AREA OF OVERALL RESEARCH AND INFORMATION SUPPORT SINCE 1994

·         Members of Parliament and Committees have had access to a fully functional special library (the Library of Parliament) including a full reference service, inter-library loans, specialised news clippings service, electronic and hard-copy journal subscriptions, comprehensive law section focusing on South African law, processing and indexing, acquisitions and special services. Since 2005, the Library has increased its acquisition of electronic sources of information and the provision of electronic information products such as blogs. The Library catalogue is also available to members and staff electronically through Parliament's website.

 

·         The enhanced support to Committees project also includes the appointment of subject specialist librarians per cluster. This is intended to improve the quality and relevance of information resources and products provided by the Library of Parliament. Subject specialist librarians will also be required to provide proactive, customised information to Members and Committees in the specific areas of interest. Due to financial constraints, the appointment of subject specialist librarians has been held in abeyance until sufficient resources can be secured in the budget.

 

CHANGES IN THE AREA OF OVERALL RESEARCH AND INFORMATION SUPPORT SINCE 1994

Committee Support Services

The growth in this area is illustrated by the following


budgetary allocation:

Service

2005/6

2006/7

2007/8

Research & Library

18,100,630

19,409,511

24,131,935

Committees and staff

51,191,393

56,051,268

62,868,065



CHANGES IN HANSARD REPORTING SINCE 1994

From Xywrite to Ms Word

·         Until 1998, Hansard was produced using an antiquated software known as Xywrite.

 

From Analogue to Digital

·         In 2003, language services acquired a digital recording and transcription system known as PRISM. This revolutionized the production of Hansard in a number of ways:

 

·         Recorders (loggers) no longer had to produce cue sheets manually.

 

·         Reporters no longer had to go into the Hansard bay to obtain their takes on audio tapes. These are now sent electronically.

 

·         Takes are no longer sent form reporter to checker by messenger service.

 

·         This is now done electronically.

 

·         The Presiding Officers no longer have to wait for a day or so before getting Hansard transcripts when they need to make rulings. This is now available within 30 minutes

 

CHANGES IN HANSARD REPORTING SINCE 1994

·         Although transcripts of members' speeches are now available hours after delivery, they cannot be sent to the Members immediately because the majority of the reporters are second and even third language speakers of English. There is therefore a need for them to be checked by qualified sub-editors and editors.

 

·         In 2006,33 Senior Language Practitioner posts were created to address this deficiency. The Senior Language Practitioners assumed duty in June 2007. They are currently being trained. Once they are able to perform the function of quality control efficiently, Members' speeches will be available to them within 24 hours of delivery.

 

IMPACT OF THE NEW LANGUAGE POLICY

From two Languages to Twelve Languages

 

·         In 2003 Parliament adopted a language policy. There was previously no language policy in Parliament. There was, however, a "gentlemen's agreement" that allowed Members to use any of the 11 official languages in the Houses of Parliament. This did not extend to committee meetings, where Members were compelled to use English.

 

·         A fully-fledged interpreting unit is in place. Members' Speeches are interpreted simultaneously from floor language to English and consecutively from English to all other languages including Sign Language.

 

·         With the new language policy, plans are at an advanced stage to hire sessional interpreters who will provide interpreting services to committees. The selection process for the first batch of 60 interpreters has been completed and recommendations for appointment made. However, due to budget constraints, there has been a slight delay in appointing them.

 

·         Sign language interpreting was available only to the single Member of Parliament who needed the service. It is now available to the visitors' galleries as well. It will soon be incorporated in all parliamentary TV broadcasts. Plans in this regard are at advances stage.

 

SYSTEMS TO MONITOR THE TABLING AND CONSIDERATION OF ANNUAL REPORTS BY COMMITTEES

 

·         The Presiding Officers refer the reports to the relevant Committee for consideration and report. The committee considers the annual report and report to the House. The House Chairperson monitors this process. Committee Section submits progress report to the House Chairperson for Committees.

 

·         The challenge is that some departments do not table the reports on time. Some committees do not consider the annual reports.

 

PARLIAMENTARY DEMOCRACY OFFICES

BACKGROUND

·         The project was approved in 2005 and is aimed at establishing Parliamentary Democracy Offices in all nine provinces

 

THE OBJECTIVE IS:

·         To expand Parliament's access & opportunity to directly engage with the people

 

·         To assist with realizing the public participation objectives of Parliament

 

·         To increase the points of contact where people can access Parliament and inform its work and processes;

 

·         To create an immediate parliamentary presence in the provinces; and

 

·         To ensure a greater level of efficiency in accessing communities and providing ground support for parliamentary programmes.

 

PARLIAMENTARY DEMOCRACY OFFICES

The project is being implemented in phases;

 

Phase 1: Establish 3 offices in 2007 / 2008

 

·         Limpopo Province: (Matlala Thaba)

 

·         Northern Cape Province: (Kakamas)

 

·         North West Province: (Ganyesa)

 

Phase 2: Establish 6 offices in 2008/2009

 

·         Kwazulu-Natal Province

 

·         Mpumalanga Province

 

·         Gauteng Province

 

·         Western Province

 

·         Free State Province

 

Eastern Cape Province

PUBLIC EDUCATION PROGRAMME

·         The Public Education Programme mainly exists to support Parliament's Core Objective 3: To facilitate public participation and involvement.

 

·         The office facilitates the involvement of the public in law-making and other parliamentary processes by nurturing an understanding of Parliament and its work through educational and information sharing activities.

 

·         It also provides a support service to committees in the process of reaching out to communities throughout South Africa.

 

·         The Public Education Office (PEO) was established in 1995.

 

·         PEO is sub-divided into two sub-components, namely, Programmes, which is responsible for projects of an outreach nature, and Publications.

 

OUTREACH PROGRAMMES

1. Radio Programmes

Weekly magazine programme (5 minutes) produced in 11 languages, flighted on 14 SASC radio stations and reach 26 million listeners

2. Publications

·         Submissions Booklets for Taking Parliament to the People

 

·         Your Guide to the Parliament: This guide is intended to educate the public on the structure of Parliament and how it operates

 

·         In Session Magazine: The magazine is produced and distributed nationally with a print-run of 140 000.

 

·         Parliamentary Directory: provide an easy reference of Parliament and Members information, and contains photographs and contact details of Members as well as a brief description of what Parliament does and how it functions.

 

3. Parliamentary Website : aims to assist the public in keeping abreast of developments at Parliament and to educate the public about Parliament.

 

OTHER PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PROGRAMMES

1. Sector Parliaments :

·         Youth Parliament

 

·         Women's Parliament

 

2. People's Assembly

Parliament hold its formal sitting in a selected province and this provides an opportunity for the local community and provincial representatives to participate in parliamentary processes.

Taking Parliament to the People

The NCOP hold a formal sitting in two of the nine provinces and this provides an opportunity for the local community to participate in NCOP processes.

PROCESSES TO FACILITATE PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AT THE LEVEL OF COMMITTEES AND OTHER PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PROCESSI;S

·         Parliamentary Communication Services supports committees in the process of reaching out to communities throughout South Africa.

 

·         This happens in the following ways:

 

- Radio Programme in 11 languages

- Media promotions/campaigns

- Current affairs radio programmes

- News bulletins (where possible)

- Televisions programmes e.g. The View from the House on SASC 2 and Shift TV on SASC 1 Paid for media adverts

- Radio Slots and Committee Support: includes interviews with committee chairpersons Information provided includes:

·         Educational material on parliamentary committees

 

·         Invitations to make oral and written submissions

 

·         How to make a submission

 

·         Upcoming public hearings, meetings and oversight visits

 

·         Matters committees are dealing with

 

·         Contact information for submitting or obtaining information