The Blue House said on the 1st that Kim Yong-beom, the presidential policy chief, offered to resign. President Lee Jae-myung accepted his resignation. It came just before a Cabinet meeting in the morning to deliberate and approve the super budget plan and a tax reform plan.
Kang Yu-jung, the Blue House chief spokesperson, held a briefing in the morning and said, "Deputy Minister Kim offered to resign yesterday (on the 31st of last month)." She added, "President Lee accepted the resignation today."
Deputy Minister Kim has faced calls to step down from the opposition over turmoil in the stock market following the introduction of single-stock leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and controversy over failures in real estate policy.
In response, the Blue House effectively rejected the "demand for dismissal," saying, "It is more important to closely watch the market and stay on top of countermeasures."
However, after the tax reform plan that would increase the tax burden on nonresident single-home owners was unveiled, public opinion deteriorated rapidly, and as voices grew inside and outside over "Kim Yong-beom's responsibility," it appears Deputy Minister Kim offered to resign.
Initially, the Blue House did not replace Deputy Minister Kim during the "mid-level Cabinet reshuffle" on the 30th of last month. In political circles, some said the decision may have considered that if Deputy Minister Kim resigned, it would amount to acknowledging that the Blue House bears responsibility for the policy failures.