Food labelling & advertising regulation for comment by 14 July 2023

Food labelling & advertising regulation for comment by 14 July 2023

Gazette 11572 14 April Regulations relating to the labelling and advertising of foodstuffs

The Minister of Health has, under section 15 (1) of the Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act, 1972 (Act No.54 of 1972), published for public comment the regulations in the
Interested persons are invited to submit any substantiated comments or representations on the proposed regulations, to the Director-General of Health, Private Bag X828, Pretoria, 0001 (for the attention of the Director: Food Control), by email to [email protected]  within three months of the date of publication.   14 July 2023
gov gaz R11572 14 april 23 food labelling advertising

 

Comment extended: NHI Bill 29 November 2019

The Portfolio Committee on Health invites stakeholders and interested parties to submit written submissions on the National Health Insurance Bill [B11-2019]

The objective of the Bill is to achieve universal access to quality health care services in the Republic in accordance with section 27 of the Constitution; to establish a National Health Insurance Fund and to set out its powers, functions and governance structures; to provide a framework for the strategic purchasing of health care services by the Fund on behalf of users; to create mechanisms for the equitable, effective and efficient utilisation of the resources of the Fund to meet the health needs of the population; to preclude or limit undesirable, unethical and unlawful practices in relation to the Fund and its users; and to provide for matters connected herewith.

Comments must be submitted to Ms Vuyokazi Majalamba at [email protected]  by no later than Friday, 29 November 2019

Enquires can be directed to Ms Vuyokazi Majalamba at [email protected] and 021 403 3770 or 083 709 8522

You can track the processing of the Bill here

The Bill has been tagged/classified as a section 76 bill (ordinary bill affecting provinces). The process of classifying a Bill into one of four categories is called “tagging” and will determine the procedures the Bill must follow to become law. Bills are tagged by the Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM), a Committee consisting of the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly and the Chairperson and Permanent Deputy Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces. They are advised by the Parliamentary Law Adviser. The JTM decides on the classification of the Bill by consensus.

This Bill in substantial measure falls within the ambit of ‘‘health services’’ which is an area listed in Part A of Schedule 4, which makes provision for functional areas of concurrent national and provincial legislative competence.

In the Tongoane judgment the CC held that the tagging test focuses on all the provisions of the Bill in order to determine the extent to which they substantially affect the functional areas listed in Schedule 4 and not on whether any of its provisions are incidental to its substance

The CC further held that the test for tagging must be informed by its purpose. Tagging is not concerned with determining the sphere of government that has the competence to legislate on a matter. Nor is the purpose concerned with preventing interference in the legislative competence of another sphere of government. The process is concerned with the question of how the Bill should be considered by the provinces and in the National Council of Provinces, and how a Bill must be considered by the provincial legislatures depends on whether it affects the provinces. The more it affects the interest, concerns and capacities of the provinces, the more say the provinces should have on its content

Climate Change Bill: Comment by 8 August 2018

 Note: Vicki Pinkney-Atkinson Climate action, SDG 13, is closely linked to Health SDG 3 and NCDs 

Some SDG 13 targets: 

  • Strengthen resilience &  adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries
  • Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning
  • Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early

 

Environmental Affairs (EA) Minister Dr Edna Molewa has published the National Climate Change Bill in Government Gazette 41689 (Notice No. 636) for public comment.

“The purpose of the Bill is to build an effective climate change response and ensure the long-term, just transition to a climate resilient and lower carbon economy and society.

“This will be done within the context of sustainable development for South Africa, and will provide for all matters related to climate change,” the Department of  EA said in a statement.

The department said the Bill acknowledges that anthropogenic climate change represents an urgent threat to human societies and the environment and requires an effective, progressive and well-coordinated response.

“It further highlights that, amongst others, anticipated domestic climate change impacts have the potential to undermine the country’s development goals, and that responses to climate change raise unique challenges, thus requiring a legislative framework for the implementation of the country’s national climate change response,” the department said.

The National Climate Change Bill addresses issues related to institutional and coordination arrangement across the three spheres of government namely national, provincial and local. It also highlights the need for the spheres of government and entities, sectors as well business to respond to challenges of climate change.

The bill further addresses matters relating to the national adaptation to impacts of climate change, greenhouse gas emissions and removals, and policy alignment and institutional arrangements.

“Section 24 of the Constitution of South Africa states that everyone has a right to an environment that is not harmful to their health and well-being, and that all have the right to have the environment protected for the benefit of present and future generation, while allowing justifiable environmentally sustainable economic and social development,” the department said.

A Series of Provincial Stakeholder Engagement Workshops, where all stakeholders and interested parties will be able to comment on the National Climate Change Bill, will be hosted by the department countrywide.

The objects of the proposed Act are to:

  • Provide for the coordinated and integrated response to climate change and its impacts by all spheres of government in accordance with the principles of cooperative governance;
  • Provide for the effective management of inevitable climate change impacts through enhancing adaptive capacity, strengthening resilience and reducing vulnerability to climate change, with a view to building social, economic, and environmental resilience and an adequate national adaptation response in the context of the global climate change response;
    and to
  • Make a fair contribution to the global effort to stabilise greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that avoids dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system within a timeframe and in a manner that enables economic, employment, social and environmental development to proceed in a sustainable manner.

Members of the public are invited to submit to the Minister, by 8 August 2018, written inputs or comments to the following addresses:

By emailBy post:  The Director-General: Department of EA, Attention:  Ms Dineo Ngobeni,  Private Bag X447,  Pretoria  0001., By hand:  Environment House, 473 Steve Biko Street, Arcadia, Pretoria, 0002

Any inquiries in connection with the National Climate Change Bill, 2018, can be directed to Mr Tlou Ramaru at +27-12 399 9252  or Ms Deborah Ramalope at +27 12 399 9160.

See a copy of  socio-economic impact assessment report and memorandum of objects

To access the National Climate Change Bill 

 

Finance Standing Committee – Comment & public hearings: Taxation of Sugar Sweetened Beverages

The Standing Committee on Finance and Portfolio Committee on Health invite you to submit written submissions on the Taxation of Sugar Sweetened Beverages.

The Minister of Finance announced in the February 2016 Budget a decision to introduce a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) with effect from 1 April 2017 to help reduce excessive sugar intake. This announcement came against the backdrop of a growing global concern regarding obesity stemming from the overconsumption of sugar. Obesity is a global epidemic and a major risk factor linked to the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including heart diseases, type 2 diabetes and some forms of cancers. NCDs are the leading causes of mortality globally, resulting in more deaths than all other causes combined, and the world’s low and middle-income populations are the most affected. The problem of obesity has grown over the past 30 years in South Africa resulting in the country being ranked the most obese country in sub-Saharan Africa.

Public hearings will be conducted at Parliament on Tuesday, 31 January 2017.

Submissions and any interest in making oral presentation must be received by no later than 12:00 on Friday, 27 January 2017.

Comments can be emailed to Mr Allen Wicomb at [email protected] by no later than 12:00 on Friday,27 January 2017.

Enquiries can be directed to Mr Allen Wicomb on tel. (021) 403-3759.

Issued by Hon. YI Carrim, MP, Chairperson: Standing Committee on Finance (National Assembly).

For a step by step guide on how to write a submission: Click Here

Call for Comments on Draft Policy for Children with Profound Intellectual Disability

The Government Gazette is calling for comments to the Draft Policy for the Provision of Quality Education and Support for Children with Severe to Profound Intellectual Disability as well as on the Draft Learning Programme.

The Draft Policy is the culmination of deliberations since 2011 of the Inter-Departmental Forum with representation from the Departments of Health, Social Development, Transport, Public Works, Co-Operative Governance and Traditional Affairs and the Western Cape Provincial Government. Together with the Draft Policy, a Learning Programme has also been developed to guide caregivers and teachers on how to provide stimulation to children so as to maximise their development and learning.

Comments to both draft policy documents MUST BE submitted by 9 December 2016.

Comments must be submitted on the template that is provided and addressed to
Mrs M Schoeman at [email protected].

For any further enquiries, please contact
Dr M Simelane at 012 357 4082
Mrs Schoeman at 012 357 4084
Ms M Chaane at 012 357 4105

 

All documents, including the response template can be downloaded from the NCDs Knowledge Base: Click here for download

A consultation session to finalise the policy document and Learning Programme is being arranged for 12 and 13 January 2017. A formal invitation will be sent regarding this.