The People Power Party emphasized on the 25th that the direction of the National Assembly review of the supplementary budget of 12.2 trillion won should not include inefficient items such as regional currencies, which have uncertain effects, stating that financial support should be strengthened for wildfire damage relief.
Kim Sang-hoon, the policy committee chair, said during a meeting at the National Assembly that "the supplementary budget review should be conducted quickly for the people's livelihood rather than for political strife."
Chairman Kim criticized, saying, "The Democratic Party is focusing the direction of the supplementary budget review on the budget for regional currency issuance, obscuring the essence, and is insisting on regional currency projects that have not been verified for effectiveness under the guise of increasing support for people's livelihood."
Earlier, the Democratic Party of Korea stated its position the previous day (24th) that it should budget at least 1 trillion won for the issuance of regional currency in this supplementary budget and that it must increase boldly during the supplementary budget review process.
Chairman Kim also emphasized that "this supplementary budget is a carefully prepared budget, burdensome even for future generations, amid difficult financial conditions," stating that "the People Power Party will prioritize quick supplementary budget reviews as the first principle and will proceed with strict adjustments for inefficient items while simultaneously providing aggressive supplements for necessary areas."
He then presented the direction for review, suggesting ▲ budget and support rate normalization for wildfire damage relief ▲ expansion of support budget for small businesses ▲ budget to ease burdens on youth such as support for college tuition ▲ budget to relieve burdens on people's livelihood, including protection for children and support for farmers and the elderly ▲ budget for support to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) ▲ restoration of budget for livelihood investigations, including drug investigations.
Chairman Kim repeatedly urged, saying, "I ask the Democratic Party to cooperate in processing the supplementary budget as quickly as possible through a grand agreement this time."