South Africans should probably brace for pain when Finance Minister Tito Mboweni delivers his 2021 Budget speech later this month. If he holds to the consolidation path outlined in the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement, there will be a squeeze from both sides: expenditure cuts and taxes. Some are warning that such a jolt could be too painful to bear in light of the Covid-19 shock and may even hamper prospects for a much-needed economic recovery.