The GOOD party has called the delay of the City’s of Cape Town’s Budget Vote a major democratic win for residents. After mounting public pressure and petitions the municipality has confirmed it will delay its Budget Vote in order to allow for more public input on the 2025/26 municipal budget.

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The extension is a direct response to calls for transparency and a fairer budget. The metro will present amendments at a full Council meeting on 28 May 2025, with a new public comment period running until 13 June 2025. This comes after heightened concerns over proposed tariffs that could overwhelm the already overburdened residents who are battling to stay afloat with the high cost of living.

GOOD has called on Capetonians to  use this extended window to study the changes, ask the tough questions, and make their voices count. Let’s make this more than a technical compliance exercise.

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At the same time, Build One South Africa (BOSA) also termed it a win for Capetonians, adding that the move demonstrates that civic action works and that no budget should ever be forced into effect without meaningful consultation.

“We welcome the reopening of public participation, but our demands remain unchanged,” said BOSA spokesperson Roger Solomons. “The City must go back to the drawing board and deliver a budget that is affordable, equitable, and prioritises cutting waste before cutting deeper into residents’ pockets.”

This is what Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis had to say:

“The City’s Mayoral Committee this week considered a report on public participation, including a petition calling for the raising of residential electricity prices instead of a City-wide cleaning charge. Our modelling shows this will negatively impact households and that it is better to pursue other relief measures. It is also not feasible to phase out critical and urgent infrastructure upgrades as the petition requests. Cape Town will not follow the path of decline seen in other cities, and there are no non-urgent major infrastructure projects in our capital budget.

“We’ve thoroughly examined the budget to find innovative means to further soften the impact on monthly bills and will table these amendments at Council for public comment from 28 May – 13 June. Amendments to commercial tariff structures will also be tabled,” said Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis.