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The Democratic Alliance is considering seeking help from British political parties as it tries to get answers about the costly renovation of South Africa House in London. Ryan Smith, the DA's spokesperson for international relations and cooperation, told Biznews in an interview that key information remains difficult to obtain despite a series of parliamentary questions to Minister Ronald Lamola. South Africa was closed for renovations earlier this year without any public announcement, after years of neglect of the iconic building on Trafalgar Square. Lord Peter Hain has described the neglect as "frankly disturbing and shameful." Embassy staff have now returned and the work on the exterior appears to be complete, but DIRCO is not forthcoming about what is happening inside the building and when it will be finished. Smith says DIRCO has put the cost at around R170 million, more than double the DA's earlier estimate, but has not indicated what the money is for. He says the party might now ask the UK's Liberal Democrats in London to help find out. – Linda van Tilburg

By BizNews editor Alec Hogg's count, South Africans have bolted nine gigawatts of solar onto their roofs, more than three times what the state's own renewables programme has delivered. There are more than three private security guards for every police officer. And on the road past Richards Bay, he and his wife clocked five kilometres of trucks waiting to get into the harbour. In the opening keynote of the 19th International Business Conference at Arabella, Alec told around 300 business academics that the noise around South Africa hides a clear signal: the collapse of an ideology driven by people who were passionate but, in his words, economically ignorant. He set out five signals, from privatisation by stealth and regulators under strain to coalition politics, the collapsing cost of intelligence and a fragmenting world order, and explained why they leave him more excited about the country, not less. He closed with what Socrates, Warren Buffett and the late Bill Lynch taught him about acting when you will never have the full picture.

Six US anti-terrorism lawsuits against MTN have moved into discovery, and Simone Heradien warns the claims - that MTN paid protection money to tower operators in Iran, Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan - could reach Cyril Ramaphosa, who chaired the group at the time, and feed Donald Trump's executive order on South Africa. The DA's Ryan Smith tells Linda van Tilburg that Dirco won't say what R170 million of South Africa House renovations will buy. Dean Macpherson gives Alec Hogg his read on KZN's coalition maths. Plus Wall Street's rally, and Nike's slide.

In the latest NdB Sunday Show, gender activist and former president of the Pretoria Diplomatic Association, Simone Heradien, talks to Chris Steyn about The Grand - also known as the unofficial HQ of the Sandton Police - where suspended Deputy National Commissioner General Shadrack Sibiya was arrested on rape and sexual grooming charges. The Grand is also at the centre of an investigation into a former Sandton police station commander in relation to a photograph showing a stripper in what appears to be a police uniform. On the international relations front, Heradien explains why she thinks President Cyril Ramaphosa’s appointment of Roelf Meyer’s performance was a great diplomatic move, but also warns of implications for South Africa - and the president personally - from the “terror-funding” case against MTN that has now moved to the discovery phase in the US. Heradien, once a dedicated African National Congress (ANC) activist - who worked for Willie Hofmeyer - says she now finds herself in “political wilderness” and while “the heart is still there”, she cannot be voting for “what they've brought the country to”. This as a warrant of arrest was issued - but stayed - for former Defence Minister Nosisiwe Mapisa-Nqakula - after she failed to make another appearance at her corruption trial.

Ipsos had MK on 55% in eThekwini and the DA on 17%. Dean Macpherson told Alec Hogg he did not trust those numbers, and said the DA would end up either the largest party in Durban or the largest party in its governing coalition. The DA's KwaZulu-Natal chairperson walked through a little-known rule that, in his telling, leaves only two realistic contenders for Durban's mayoralty, and explained why a single councillor could decide who runs many KZN councils. Wearing his ministerial hat, he argued that the trillion rand set aside for infrastructure was not short of money but stuck in procurement, with only one in six big tenders awarded. He described how the Independent Development Trust went from an entity he considered shutting down to tripling its cash in a year, why the state was now selling land it did not need, and how he squared administering the Expropriation Act with his own party's court challenge against it.