The Democratic Party of Korea accepted the claim of the People Power Party regarding the national pension reform to have a 'replacement rate of 43%' and urged the government and the ruling party to discuss drafting a supplementary budget. The National Assembly Policy Council, which includes the floor leadership from both parties, will focus on discussing the supplementary budget while handling pension reform in the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee.
Democratic Party of Korea chief spokesperson Cho Seung-rae met with reporters at the National Assembly on the afternoon of the 14th and said, '(The Democratic Party) has taken a significant step toward pension reform by fully accepting the national pension replacement rate of 43%. (The People Power Party) hesitated regarding the supplementary budget while citing the national pension issue, but I expect the People Power Party and the government to swiftly advance the supplementary budget decisively.'
Jin Sung-jun, chair of the Democratic Party's Policy Committee, announced at a supreme committee meeting held in Gwanghwamun, Seoul, that they would accept the suggested national pension replacement rate of 43% by the People Power Party. Jin said, 'Following the directive from Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, we have decided to make a significant concession after discussions at the supreme committee, and the Democratic Party can no longer neglect the economic crisis faced by people's livelihoods due to Yoon Suk-yeol's internal conflict.'
Earlier, the Democratic Party announced its own supplementary budget plan on the 13th of last month. The Democratic Party's supplementary budget plan included a 'four-package consumer stimulation' initiative. The four packages consist of: ▲ 13.1 trillion won for a 'livelihood recovery consumer coupon' granting 250,000 won worth of local currency to every citizen ▲ 2.4 trillion won for a cashback program ▲ 2 trillion won for local currency discounts of 10% ▲ 500 billion won in consumer vouchers for accommodation, tourism, performances, films, exhibitions, sports, dining, and agricultural and marine products.
Both parties have discussed the supplementary budget, pension reform, and the Semiconductor Special Act at the National Assembly's Policy Council but have not reached an agreement. However, the Democratic Party is expected to pressure discussions on the supplementary budget based on accepting the replacement rate of 43% for pension reform proposed by the People Power Party. In particular, the People Power Party's selective support method, including the '1 million won voucher for small business utility bills' proposed as a recovery measure for the living economy, may also come up at the supplementary budget negotiation table.
Chief spokesperson Cho said, 'We officially announced the acceptance of the replacement rate of 43%, but there has been no formal request or response from the People Power Party regarding this,' and added that 'pension reform should be conducted separately at the welfare committee level rather than at the National Assembly Policy Council. Currently, it is appropriate for the National Assembly Policy Council to focus on discussions related to the supplementary budget.' He then emphasized, 'We must improve the serious economic situation through the supplementary budget, and we hope they will fulfill that responsibility. If they promptly prepare the supplementary budget plan for submission to the National Assembly, we can adjust the scale or specifics during the deliberation and voting process.'
Regarding the background of accepting the replacement rate proposed by the People Power Party, he noted, 'Political considerations were not heavily factored in, and rather, if there are significant political changes (early elections), it creates a structure that makes agreements difficult. I hope we can clarify and discuss the policy debate whether it is universal payment for all citizens or selective payments.'