Committee Attendance for the 6th Parliament +
+ +Committees operate as the central cogs of the parliamentary machinery and are the site for + where most of the legislature’s business is located. While it is often the main chambers that garner attention, + they ratify work that has been processed, deliberated, negotiated and teased out for months, or sometimes even + years, in committees. Therefore attendance of committee meetings is a critical component of an effective + Parliament and for MP accountability.
+Since the beginning of the Sixth Parliament, PMG has recorded attendance (View Addendum) in Committee meetings. + Our records show an overall attendance rate of 70% in the Sixth Parliament., which is less than the 74% achieved + in the Fifth Parliament. + The COVID lockdown and subsequent regulations limiting social interaction, combined with the fire, which limited + meeting venues, forced Parliament to conduct meetings online via Zoom. Only in the past year have we seen a slow + uptick in physical or hybrid meetings. We estimate that 90+ % of meetings were conducted online throughout the + term.
+In light of this, the attendance result is somewhat surprising as we had expected an improvement.
++ Attendance can be impacted by MP turnover (resignations, deaths etc), clashes in the parliamentary programme as + MPs sit on multiple committees, political party assignments, parliamentary events (IPU and regional Parliament + events etc), health issues and other priorities. In addition, smaller parties (8 out of the 14 political parties + in Parliament have 1 or 2 members) often have to decide what portfolios to prioritise.
+Those Portfolio Committees that stand out for top attendance in the Sixth Parliament are: +
+ +-
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- Home Affairs: 78% +
- Public Workd and Infrastructure: 78% +
- Social Development: 78% +
- Sport, Arts and Culture: 79% +
- Health: 78% +
- Trade, Industry and Competition: 88% +
This list is quite unlike what was seen in our Fifth Parliament review. The only committee to remain a top + performer in terms of attendance for both the Fifth and Sixth Parliaments is the Portfolio Committee on Sport. + The Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry had a significant increase while the Portfolio Committee on + Transport had the opposite result. It could be inferred that the high attendance for the health committee is due + to the committee considering important COVID updates and related matters over its tenure and that the committee + considered important legislation for a large portion of its tenure – we refer here to the series of meetings + processing the NHI Bill. Similarly, high attendance for the Home Affairs Committee could be attributed to the + Committee’s work on various electoral legislation.
+Attendance at committee meetings is only a portion of the larger picture. Attendance does not always correlate + with impact and effectiveness, so it is worthwhile remembering this and viewing this information in conjunction + with our committee activity statistics.
+Ministerial Attendance for the 6th Parliament
+Typically, Ministers and their deputies attend committee meetings for crucial events such as the introduction of + legislation and the tabling of annual performance plans and annual reports. Beyond this, they are requested to + address major topical issues in the public domain. When viewing the below, it is important to remember that + Ministers and their deputies are not members of the parliamentary committees and are invited to participate in + select meetings. Many honour the invitations, but some dodge, delay and request repeated postponements (this + usually involves a stern letter, a complaint to the LOGB or the threat of summons from the Committee). There are + also occasions where some make appearances even without any invitation.
+In the Sixth Parliament, Ministers with the highest attendance include:
+ +| Ministry | +Minister | +Number of meetings | +
|---|---|---|
| 1. Home Affairs | +Min Aaron Motsoaledi | +80 | +
| 2. Social Development | +Min Lindiwe Zulu | +72 | +
| 3. Environment, Forestry and Fisheries | +Min Barbara Creecy | +71 | +
| 4. Employment and Labour | +Min Thulas Nxesi | +60 | +
| 5. Police | +Min Bheki Cele | +53 | +
In the Sixth Parliament, Deputy Ministers with the highest attendance include: +
+ +| Ministry | +Minister | +Number of meetings | +
|---|---|---|
| 1. Police | +DM Cassel Mathale | +105 | +
| 2. Justice and Constitutional Development | +DM John Jeffery | +100 | +
| 3. Defence and Military Veterans | +DM Thabang Makwetla | +80 | +
| 4. Home Affairs | +DM Njabulo Nzuza | +80 | +
| 5. Basic Education | +DM Reginah Mhaule | +72 | +
From the above, we can observe a few interesting trends. One is that the highest-attending ministers and deputy + ministers are from ministries where the minister or deputy minister has not changed.
+We have also observed that the highest-attending ministers and deputy ministers are those where the committee has + developed a practice where attendance is expected. We made the point throughout this research piece that + individual committees have the power and ability to set the tone for how proceedings of the committee will be + run and what the committee will tolerate or not. So, if the Committee sets out early on that ministerial + attendance is expected at most of its meetings, this is something that the committee will hold the minister + accountable for.
+We have not disaggregated the attendance rate between NA Committees versus NCOP Committees, but typically, the + lack of attendance by the executive is raised sharply by the latter.
+When looking at ministers that have served the same portfolio for the duration of the Sixth Parliament, the + average attendance is 46 meetings. Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, Mr Ronald Lamola, at 19 + committee meetings and Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Dr Naledi Pandor, at 18 committee + meetings, are well below this average.
+We observed a noticeable increase in ministry attendance in committee meetings from 2020 to 2022. We would infer + this is attributed to COVID and virtual meetings. Virtual meetings are greatly beneficial for encouraging + ministerial attendance in committee meetings—ministers' diaries are naturally packed, so virtual meetings allow + them to attend from anywhere and even attend engagements simultaneously. It is also easier for the ministries to + address the committee at the beginning of the meeting and then easily leave the virtual meeting platform when + this is done.
+Over the Sixth Parliament, PMG also captured the attendance of individual MPs and parties overall, except for the + smaller parties. This information can be obtained here and the attendance + of individual MPs can be explored here
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