Yoon on Failure to Pass Supplementary Budget: "Small Business Owners and Self-Employed Are Struggling... It's Regrettable" (Comprehensive)

"Will the Supplementary Budget Pass? Staying in the Office Until 8 PM"
"The National Assembly Does Not Respond to the Earnest Pleas of Ordinary People"
"Did Not Expect Such Lack of Cooperation," Lamented

Democratic Party Demands 19.9 Trillion Won Increase to Government Proposal
After Negotiations, Tentative Agreement to Hold Plenary Session on the 28th

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] President Yoon Seok-yeol said on the 27th that it is truly regrettable that the National Assembly did not convene today despite small business owners and self-employed people struggling to breathe, following the failure to pass the supplementary budget bill (supplementary budget) for COVID-19 loss compensation.

The presidential office announced around 8:02 p.m. that President Yoon expressed, "I stayed in the office until 8 p.m. hoping the supplementary budget bill might be passed, but in the end, the National Assembly did not respond to the earnestness of the common people."

He added, "I did not expect the National Assembly to be this uncooperative," and appealed once again to the National Assembly to deeply understand the feelings of small business owners and self-employed people.

Earlier, the government proposed a second supplementary budget plan amounting to 36.4 trillion won (total size 59.4 trillion won). The ruling and opposition parties continued negotiations but failed to reach an agreement. The People Power Party proposed a slightly increased amount compared to the government’s 36.4 trillion won (total size 59.4 trillion won) during the negotiation process. The Democratic Party is demanding a supplementary budget of 56.3 trillion won, which is 19.9 trillion won more than that.

Accordingly, the ruling and opposition parties agreed to continue negotiations over the weekend and tentatively agreed to hold a plenary session on the evening of the 28th.

Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, told reporters at the National Assembly after the negotiations broke down, "The Democratic Party did not agree to the government and ruling party’s final proposal, so we decided not to hold a plenary session today." He added, "We tentatively agreed to hold a plenary session at 8 p.m. tomorrow, and if that is not feasible, we cannot rule out the possibility of holding it on Sunday (the 29th)."

Park Hong-geun, floor leader of the Democratic Party, said, "We plan to continue narrowing differences related to the supplementary budget and gather opinions." To pass the supplementary budget before the June 1 local elections, all procedures must be completed by the 29th, when the current National Assembly leadership’s term ends. Even if the ruling and opposition parties reach an agreement on the supplementary budget, it is expected that the Ministry of Economy and Finance’s sheet work (adjustment of figures) will take considerable time.