The number of portfolio committees in Parliament will increase from 27 to 30.
This was proposed at last night's House of Representatives Rules Committee.
One of the urgent tasks was to restructure these committees in light of the expansion of the new national executive.
Consideration will also be given to setting up a subcommittee to look into the allocation of seats by political parties in the House of Representatives, as some of the parties are currently in power.
“We have 32 ministries and agencies now, so we are proposing to set up 30 technical committees to match the ministries that have been established. And towards the end of the 6th Parliament, we had 27 technical committees. This increase is due to the separation of Agriculture from Rural Development and Land Reform, Science and Technology from Higher Education, and the creation of Power and Energy. The Department of Corrections has also been separated from the judiciary, and the Ministry of Power did not have a technical committee before, but now it does. And this does not include joint committees,” he said.
Another committee that could be set up is a committee to hold the president accountable. Xaso added: “In the last parliament, there was the issue of a committee dealing with vote one, but the recommendation that was put forward in the last parliament was that that committee could be a committee on monitoring and evaluation that would deal with vote one issues, and if there is an opinion that such a committee should still be set up, we would like to make that recommendation this time too.”
Veronica Mente, House Secretary of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), was vocal in raising the issue of the new seating arrangement and which party should occupy the opposition seats.
“At the Chief Whip Forum yesterday, we agreed to come here and establish principles on seating arrangements and determine the opposition. I know that the modalities will be dealt with in the Rules Sub-Committee. But in terms of seating arrangements, we all know that and live by that reality because the government is already constituted. Those who are in government must be in government and those who are in opposition must be in opposition. Having said that, that means MK (Umkhonto we'Sizwe Party) is the opposition and MK must be given Leader of the Opposition and Chief Whip of the Opposition, Deputy Chief Whip of the Opposition. So we need to establish that principle. Even if it goes to the sub-committee, which will deal with the finer points of tenure and all of that, the reality is that the GNU is operating.”
Speaker of Parliament and Chairperson of the Parliamentary Procedure Committee, Thoko Didiza, agreed with the urgency of the sub-committee meeting.
“I don't think there's any debate about the principle that that should be established, but what is being asked is whether the subcommittee can submit a comprehensive report and whether that committee can meet as soon as possible.”
The National Assembly Rules Committee also noted the need for a joint committee to be established by the Joint Rules Committee of Parliament consisting of both the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) Rules Committees.
Video | National Assembly Rules Committee proposes expanding number of committees: