[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] The ruling party and the government failed to reach an agreement during the budget negotiations held on the 30th, as they showed differences in their positions on next year’s budget proposal.
On the same day, Jo O-seop, a member of the Democratic Party’s Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, told reporters after the ruling party-government budget meeting held at the National Assembly, "We only confirmed each other’s positions and did not reach a conclusion."
Jo said, "There were mainly differences in the amount regarding support for small business owners, and there were also differing views on the methods and amounts related to the local love gift certificates."
Jo added, "The party’s position is that since the public wants it and its effectiveness for small business owners has been proven, we want to make it as substantial as possible," while "the financial authorities showed some reluctance regarding the scale." He emphasized again, "The party’s stance is that we should proceed in a way that benefits small business owners and the public, so that people can gain more practical benefits."
The ruling party and the government are expected to meet again tomorrow morning, at the latest one day before the legal deadline for budget approval (the 2nd), to create a revised proposal and continue discussions.
Regarding compensation for losses of small business owners, Jo said, "We are discussing overall support by industry and support for non-eligible industries," adding, "I don’t know if it will be in the morning or afternoon, but we will meet again tomorrow."
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