Acting Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on the 24th said, "The time for government finances to reach those in dire need of help is now," calling for cooperation from the National Assembly on the supplementary budget proposal.
The acting prime minister revealed this during a policy speech at the National Assembly at 10 a.m. that day, stating, "In crisis response, the timing of implementation is as crucial as the content of the policies."
It is the first time in 46 years since the policy speech of an acting president, then acting president Choi Kyu-ha in 1979.
He explained, "This supplementary budget proposal has been carefully prepared with a focus on essential projects that reflect the demands from the field as much as possible for greater effectiveness."
The government's supplementary budget proposal amounts to 12.2 trillion won and has been submitted to the National Assembly as of the afternoon of the 21st. By sector, it includes ▲ 3.2 trillion won for disaster response ▲ 4.4 trillion won for support of trade and artificial intelligence (AI) ▲ 4.3 trillion won for living support.
Han noted, "For residents who have lost their livelihoods due to wildfires, the hope to start anew is urgent, and to prevent our industries and corporations from being stranded amid the fierce waves of global competition, securing sustainable competitiveness is paramount."
He emphasized, "Practical support to alleviate the burdens in the lives of small business owners and vulnerable groups, who are getting more burdened day by day, is immediately necessary."
He stated, "To ensure rapid recovery in areas severely affected by massive and fast-paced wildfires, I will significantly boost disaster response funding from the existing 500 billion won to 1.5 trillion won," adding, "I also intend to enhance the contingency funds by 1.4 trillion won to ensure timely responses to summer typhoons and heavy rains, while sufficiently reflecting the additional recovery costs related to this wildfire."
Earlier, the Democratic Party of Korea warned regarding the government's request to increase contingency funds, stating, "Given the unprecedented scale of wildfire damage, we believe this qualifies for supplementary budget reasons," but also noted, "If we do not receive the review materials, we will cut it by 50%."
Han said, "To prevent liquidity constraints for export corporations due to U.S. tariff measures, I will inject 1.5 trillion won into policy finance institutions to ensure the supply of special funds totaling 25 trillion won for loans, guarantees, insurance, and other necessary areas."
He also expressed his intention to strengthen policy support to become a leading AI nation, stating, "The supplementary budget for the AI sector is 1.8 trillion won," and added, "Combined with the existing budget, the government's total AI budget this year will amount to 3.6 trillion won, surpassing the target of investing 2 trillion won in the public sector by 2027 that the government previously announced."
He continued, "We will select an 'AI national representative elite team' composed of outstanding private AI corporations to develop global top-level LLMs (large language models) like ChatGPT," and said, "To strengthen the growth engines in the AI sector, we will cultivate around 3,300 graduate-level talents, which is double the initial plan, and significantly increase the AI innovation fund for promising small and venture corporations from 90 billion won to 200 billion won."
As part of the living stability support measures, he explained, "Through this supplementary budget, the government will create a maximum 500,000 won 'burden reduction credit' for small business owners with annual sales of 300 million won or less to utilize for public utilities and insurance premiums."
He stated, "To help small business owners in securing funding, we will expand policy funds by 25 trillion won for loans and guarantees, and provide 10 million won credit cards with a six-month interest-free installment option for mid-credit small business owners."
Regarding funding sources, he stated, "We plan to secure 41 trillion won through available resources including world surpluses and fund self-resources, along with issuing 81 trillion won in government bonds."
Finally, he earnestly requested, "I sincerely ask that this supplementary budget be promptly reviewed and passed so that it can serve as a valuable catalyst for economic recovery and advancement."