Rhee Chang-yong, governor of the Bank of Korea, said on the 10th that it is not desirable to use a supplementary budget to support local education budgets.
He stated accordingly at a press briefing held immediately after the meeting to decide the currency policy direction.
In response to a question about the appropriateness of drawing up a supplementary budget, he began by saying, "I view this supplementary budget positively because it was prepared through excess tax revenues, not financed through liability."
However, he said, "By law, a certain portion must be used for the education budget, so 4.8 trillion won in local government finance grants is included in the supplementary budget; whether this is appropriate needs to be considered."
He said, "In the past, when Korea implemented compulsory elementary and secondary education to foster talent, it was a desirable expenditure item, but the situation has changed now," adding, "Given the large numbers of low-income and poor households, we need to consider more carefully whether it is desirable to use the supplementary budget for education."
According to the Ministry of Planning and Budget, of the total 26.2 trillion won in the supplementary budget drawn up by the government, 9.5 trillion won will be automatically allocated to local governments and provincial and metropolitan offices of education nationwide. Unlike national tax-funded programs with earmarked uses such as high oil price relief payments and the oil price cap scheme, this money is stirring controversy because it is unclear where it will be spent going forward.