National Assembly Cape Town: 28 August 2007  

Madame Speaker, 

Our country's readiness to host the 2010 World Cup has been questioned on numerous occasions, but I have absolutely no doubt that we will prove the prophets of doom wrong and host the best event yet.

It is, however, imperative that in our efforts to be ready on time and meet deadlines we do not cut corners and place the lives of workers at risk unnecessarily. Inspectors from the Department of Labour, during an unannounced visit to Durban's 2010 Moses Mabhida Stadium, ordered construction on the sites to stop after they found non-compliance with safety regulations in certain parts of the stadium which could have endangered the lives of workers. They also found that workers had not been adequately trained on safety. According to the inspector, most of the problems encountered at the Durban Stadium were the same as those in the six other provinces they had visited. 

Considering the many dangers associated with the construction industry, the careless and hazardous behaviour displayed by the relevant contractors is unacceptable. We do, however, hope that the situation will be rectified as soon as possible, and the relevant safety requirements and standards adhered to. This should also be a lesson to contractors that under no circumstances should the lives of their employees be put at risk unnecessarily.