Some people believe that the rand is strong. Sorry folks, it’s not. And it won’t be strong any time soon. Wait! you may say. Hasn’t the rand been rising compared to the dollar? Yes it has, but what has the dollar been doing? The dollar itself has been falling against
Who should have the final say over the supply of the antiretroviral drug nevirapine to HIV-positive pregnant women? The executive arm of government or the courts? This issue has nothing to do with nevirapene, HIV-positive pregnant women, the Health Department’s view on the efficacy of the drug, its policy on
The recent announcement that Tulca, the new South African Airways (SAA) subsidiary company, would launch a new no-frills airline called Mango is both unethical and inefficient. The creation of what amounts to another state run airline will divert more taxpayer funding from alternative competing functions. As decades of successful privatisation
Governments often introduce legislation because it feels so right, yet end up causing untold misery. Lord Milner wielded great power over SAs citizens before and after the Anglo-Boer war. He said, If we believe a thing to be bad, and if we have a right to prevent it, it is
Eastern European countries, most notably Russia, have made their economies more competitive by adopting low, flat, tax rates. Russia cut its tax rate to a flat 13% in 2000 and almost doubled its tax receipts as a percentage of GDP in 2001. Estonia (26%) and Latvia (25%) led the way
