Legislation: RABS, State Liability Bills revived

The 2017 Road Accident Benefit Scheme Bill’s ‘B’ version, 2017 International Crimes Bill, 2018 State Liability Bill and 2018 Prevention & Combating of Hate Crimes & Hate Speech Bill were among 15 lapsed pieces of proposed new legislation expected to be revived during Tuesday's National Assembly plenary. This is according to an order paper circulated that morning. In the absence of a media statement to the contrary, there is every reason to believe the motion was carried. However, it included a caveat requiring proceedings on all 15 Bills to be resumed ‘from the stage … (at which) they were referred to the relevant committees of the Assembly for consideration and report’, notes Pam Saxby for Legalbrief Policy Watch.

This has interesting implications for the controversial Road Accident Benefit Scheme Bill, which was still before the House for another second reading when it rose for May’s elections. The Bill lapsed at the end of last year when attempts at voting on it were stymied by the sudden departure of opposition party MPs. There were not enough ANC MPs present to form the required quorum. Having been revived in February, the Bill remained on the National Assembly order paper pending the outcome of a DA court challenge following a decision by the previous Parliament’s National Assembly Transport Committee to exclude the ‘dissenting views’ of opposition parties from its report on the Bill. There have been no further DA statements on the matter.

Other lapsed Bills expected to be revived yesterday and on which Legalbrief Today has regularly reported are the:

• 2015 Foreign Service Bill, ‘B’ version 
• 2016 National Land Transport Amendment Bill, ‘D’ version 
• 2017 Defence Amendment Bill 
• 2018 Airports Company Amendment Bill, ‘B’ version
• 2018 Air Traffic and Navigation Services Company Amendment Bill, ‘B’ version 
• Science and Technology Laws Amendment Bill, ‘B’ version
• 2018 Social Assistance Amendment Bill 
• 2018 Civil Aviation Amendment Bill 
• 2018 South African Reserve Bank Amendment Bill 2018
• National Health Amendment Bill 
• 2019 Local Government: Municipal Systems Amendment Bill.