TimesLIVE reports that to cushion South Africans from the soaring cost of living, the government will expand the list of food items that are exempted from value added tax (VAT), President Cyril Ramaphosa told parliament in his opening address on Thursday.
The move, he said, was necessary to further protect and support poor South Africans amid rising food prices. Zero-rated food products include brown bread, maize meal, vegetables, milk, eggs and tinned fish. Ramaphosa also said that the government of national unity (GNU) had resolved to review the formula used to determine the price of fuel. In 2022, the National Treasury intervened to give a reprieve to motorists by reducing the fuel price by R1.50 a litre for about three months. Ramaphosa furthermore indicated that the government would conduct a comprehensive review of administrative prices, such electricity tariffs and municipal rates and taxes, with electricity having increased exponentially in price in the past few years. Ramaphosa noted that the high cost of living was made worse by asset poverty and that job creation was essential to dealing with poverty.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard at TimesLIVE
- Read too, GNU to tackle high cost of living, poverty, says Ramaphosa, at News24
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