Pretoria – The Portfolio Committee on Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development has unanimously adopted a motion of desirability to process two key bills – the Deeds Registries Amendment Bill and the Plant Health (Phytosanitary) Bill. This decision was made in compliance with the National Assembly’s 9th Edition Rule 286, which requires a committee to provide opportunities for public comment on bills referred to it.
According to Parliament of South Africa, both bills were advertised for public input, with a 30-day period allocated for submissions. However, no substantial written submissions were received for either bill. The Plant Health (Phytosanitary) Bill, advertised in July 2023, received no submissions during or after the advertisement period.
Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela, Chairperson of the committee, presented the motion of desirability for the Plant Health (Phytosanitary) Bill. After reviewing inputs from Legal Services on its constitutionality and the Content Advisor on policy matters, and considering the absence of contentious issues and previous consultations with relevant stakeholders by the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development, the committee found no reason not to process the bill.
The Plant Health (Phytosanitary) Bill aims to establish phytosanitary measures for preventing the introduction and spread of regulated pests in the Republic. It also seeks to control regulated pests and regulate the movement of plants, plant products, and other regulated articles within and across national borders.
Similarly, the Deeds Registries Amendment Bill did not receive significant written submissions. After seeking advice from Parliamentary Legal Advisers and Content Advisers on legal, constitutional, and policy questions, the committee decided to proceed with the bill. Nkosi Mandela noted the bill’s focus on the recordal of off-register land rights in the Deeds Office as a crucial consideration.
The Deeds Registries Amendment Bill proposes changes to the Deeds Registries Act, 1937. It includes provisions for appointing a registrar of deeds, deputy registrar of deeds, and assistant registrar of deeds under the Public Service Act, 1994, and specifies their qualification requirements.
Guided by Rule 286 (4) of the National Assembly Rules, the committee processed both bills without amendments. The bills have now been referred to the Parliamentary Legal Services for further development. The next steps involve preparing the A list and drafting the B Bills, which will then be presented to the committee for adoption.