The ruling and opposition parties have agreed on an income replacement rate of 43% for the National Pension, but they are again at an impasse in the practical negotiations. The two parties clashed over the wording 'to be processed by agreement of the ruling and opposition parties' in the proposal to form a pension special committee, which has a majority of opposition party members. There were also expectations that the pension reform proposal would be presented in the National Assembly on the 20th, but due to significant differences regarding the formation of the special committee, it seems they will continue to negotiate.
According to ChosunBiz, on the 17th, National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-sik proposed a meeting with the ruling and opposition floor leaders to discuss key agendas, including the National Pension, on the 18th. Initially, a meeting was proposed for the 17th, but the Democratic Party indicated it would not attend, citing the schedule for a demonstration urging the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol, so it did not take place.
The People Power Party is in favor of specifying 'agreement' in the decision-making process of the special committee. Floor Leader Kwon noted during a meeting of the emergency response committee that, "Since we have taken the first step of agreeing on the reform of the parameters, we need to take the second step of forming the pension special committee and structural reform," adding, "The Democratic Party is delaying discussions by rejecting even the minimum principle of 'agreement processing' in the formation of the special committee."
Kim Sang-hoon, chair of the policy committee, stated that while the Democratic Party had suggested ▲ensuring payment guarantees ▲expanding military service and childbirth credits ▲providing additional support for insurance premiums for low-income area subscribers under the premise of accepting an 'income replacement rate of 43%,' it is necessary to discuss structural reform and the introduction of an automatic adjustment mechanism in depth within the special committee for fiscal stability.
Until now, the Democratic Party has advocated for an 'income replacement rate of 44%.' However, on the 14th, following the instruction of Representative Lee Jae-myung, it announced its intention to accept the People Power Party's proposal of 43%. In response, the People Power Party welcomed this but raised concerns about the composition of the special committee, which would consist of 6 ruling party members, 1 from the minor negotiating group (Justice and Innovation Party), and 7 opposition members.
The ruling party is concerned that future discussions regarding pension finances and other issues could become difficult.
A senior official from the People Power Party noted that, "Even if we introduce an automatic adjustment mechanism (a system that adjusts pension amounts based on life expectancy or the number of pension subscribers), since it will not take effect for at least 10 years, we can have sufficient discussions on pension finances beforehand," and added, "It is meaningless to only change the parameters as desired by the Democratic Party without properly implementing structural reforms."
The Democratic Party's position is to first pass even the 'premium rate of 13% and income replacement rate of 43%' agreed upon by the ruling and opposition parties. They propose to first come to an agreement on the reform of the parameters and then gradually discuss structural reform.
On this day, Representative Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party stated during a meeting of the party's Supreme Council that, "Regarding the income replacement rate, I conceded from the originally Democratic Party proposals of 45% and 44% down to 43%, despite the people's dissatisfaction and resistance," and added, "It seems that the People Power Party is making conditions if they think agreements can be reached by conceding, treating the national affairs as if they are playing childish games."
A party official stated that, "The Democratic Party made significant concessions in order to address the urgent need for parameter reform," and noted, "If the People Power Party does not agree in the pension special committee and continues to obstruct discussions on the automatic adjustment mechanism, which the Democratic Party opposed at first, it will be difficult to achieve a better pension reform."