Ruling Party Considers Additional Support for Flower Farmers and Jeonse Bus Drivers in Disaster Relief Fund

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Eun-byeol] As controversy over fairness arises regarding the 4th disaster relief fund, the ruling party is considering additional support and an increase in the supplementary budget (supplementary budget bill). However, the government is reluctant to issue additional government bonds, drawing attention to the outcome of the discussions.

According to political circles and the government on the 7th, the Democratic Party of Korea is arguing that additional support should be provided to flower farmers, chartered bus drivers, and MICE companies (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) that were not included in the 4th disaster relief fund announced by the government on the 4th.

Among the 4th disaster relief funds, the 'Support Fund Plus' for small business owners has increased the number of beneficiaries by 1.05 million from the previous support fund to a total of 3.85 million, and the maximum payment amount has been set at 5 million won, up 2 million won from the previous 3 million won.

However, the Democratic Party still maintains that there are blind spots and that support expansion is necessary. The main groups under consideration include ▲eco-friendly farms whose supply volume decreased due to the suspension of school meals caused by COVID-19 ▲flower farmers affected by reduced flower consumption due to the complete cancellation of school entrance and graduation ceremonies ▲winter watermelon farms facing blocked sales channels ▲chartered bus drivers hit by the suspension of school field trips ▲MICE and performance and travel industries affected by the cancellation of international conferences and exhibitions. For chartered bus drivers and the exhibition industry, who often have low to medium credit ratings, plans are being considered to provide low-interest loans with long repayment periods.

However, it is known that the expansion of support to street vendors, as suggested by some, is not being considered. The Democratic Party expects that if the support targets are further expanded, the size of the customized damage support measures, including a supplementary budget of about 15 trillion won for selective support for affected groups, employment shock response, and reinforcement of quarantine measures, will increase to about 20 trillion won from the current 19.5 trillion won.

However, the government has stated that it has not yet reviewed support for flower farmers, chartered bus drivers, and others as proposed by the Democratic Party. While leaving open the possibility of additional support depending on parliamentary discussions, the government is reluctant to issue additional government bonds. Considering fiscal soundness, the issuance of deficit bonds for the supplementary budget has been set at 9.9 trillion won, so if expanding the support targets becomes unavoidable, it is understood that the government’s position is to cut existing budgets.