After Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis tabled the draft budget for the 2022/23 financial year, the potential rates increase for Capetonians comes as bittersweet news.
On the one hand – the rates are projected to increase by 5.2% – disgruntling news for any local still feeling the repercussions of the past two years’ pandemic-induced financial knock. On the other hand, as Hill-Lewis stated, “[The City has] been able to increase the budget without implementing above-inflation rates increases.”
Continuing on the sweet portion of the budget talks in the grander scheme of the costs of being a South African, Hill-Lewis added that “Cape Town already has the lowest residential and commercial property rates of any metro in South Africa, and we plan to keep it that way. Rates will increase by 5,2% this year.”
The total budget for the year for Cape Town has been revealed as R61,5 billion. Hill-Lewis commented that this was possible without ‘above-inflation rates increases’.
Tariff increases will see water and sanitation (5%) increase with an additional 1% for expanding access to water for poorer people in the informal settlements.
Electricity tariffs however are above inflation and will see a spike in increase at 9.5% due to Eskom’s 9.61% increase, which Hill-Lewis condemned.
“We know this is unfair and unaffordable, and it upsets all of us in this government that South Africans in general and Cape Town residents, in particular, have to pay so much for a service that isn’t even being reliably delivered.”
In comparison to the rest of the metros in the country, Hill-Lewis expressed that “all of these increases are in line with or below inflation forecasts for the coming year. These increases are also the lowest of any metro in the country that has tabled its budget thus far.”
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Picture: Cape {town} Etc