News24.com | #Budget2019 ICYMI: Is Eskom dead? Tax payers to fork out whopping R243bn; and how quitting your sins can save you money

#Budget2019 ICYMI: Is Eskom dead? Tax payers to fork out whopping R243bn; and how quitting your sins can save you money

2019-02-20 17:58
Finance minister Tito Mboweni delivers his 2019 budget speech in Parliament in Cape Town. (Jeffrey Abrahams, Gallo Images)

Finance minister Tito Mboweni delivers his 2019 budget speech in Parliament in Cape Town. (Jeffrey Abrahams, Gallo Images)

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The government will not be taking on Eskom's  debt, you can now calculate just how many hours you spend working for your taxes, and here's what the budget looked like last year.

Here are some of our #Budget2019 stories:

14 surprises in this year's Budget – including a new national theatre and a shock fuel tax

Government will have to borrow R243 billion in the next year to fund its expenses, and that's only if everything goes according to plan.

Tax clock: Calculate how many hours you spend working for your taxes

Just how many hours of your day do you spend working for government taxes? At which point in your day do you actually start working for yourself?

This is how fuel taxes increased since 2008 - with an extra 29c coming this year

Tax on a litre of petrol will increase by 29c in 2019, and the tax on a litre of diesel by 30c, finance minister Tito Mboweni revealed on Wednesday afternoon.

Despite calls for it to be scrapped, the sugar tax stays and has been increased as well

The tax — known as the Health Promotion Levy (HPL) — came into effect on 1 April 2018, and this increase will be implemented on its first anniversary. 

Why quitting smoking makes more 'cents'

In the speech, the minister announced that the price of a pack of 20 cigarettes will go up by 114 cents to R16.66, and that the excise duty on a typical cigar will go up by about 64 cents to R7.80. 

Minister Mboweni: Excise duties on alcohol and tobacco will be increased, as follows: #Budget2019 pic.twitter.com/zHPCtjfGI2

— South African Government (@GovernmentZA) 20 February 2019

Alcohol is getting expensive – and other reasons why you should drink less

According to the budget speech, your tipple is about to become a lot more expensive. But that's not the only reason why you should cut back on the booze.

Eskom gets R69bn in financial support over 3 years, but with conditions – Mboweni

Struggling power utility Eskom has been allocated a R69bn financial support package over the next three years by Treasury to help it service debts.

Eskom as we know it is dead - here's what's coming in its place

Finance minister Tito Mboweni said Treasury will not bail out Eskom, but will set aside R23 billion over the next three years.

From Eskom to tax, this is Mboweni's budget in a nutshell

Government's central economic policy goal remains to accelerate inclusive growth and create jobs while ensuring sustainable finances by containing the Budget deficit and stabilising public debt.

7 throwback moments from Budget 2018

How will Budget 2019 stack up against the promises of 2018? Has all that extra tax revenue paid off? How was the R57bn for fee-free education allocated? And how will the Minister of Twitter pick up where the Minister of Instagram left off?

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