Jang Ye-chan "Strong Will" Park Sung-min "Weak"
Yoo Seung-min Also "Great Disappointment"
Low Birthrate Committee "Previous Goals Abstract... Will Focus and Prioritize"
President Yoon Suk-yeol directly presided over the Low Birthrate and Aging Society Committee meeting on the 28th and expressed his determination to solve the low birthrate problem. Although measures such as 430,000 newlywed homes and tripling care services were announced, opinions differ between the ruling and opposition parties regarding their effectiveness. The Low Birthrate and Aging Society Committee stated that the problem so far was the lack of clear goals and that they plan to prepare new measures through 'selection and concentration.'
Jang Ye-chan, the youngest Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, said on SBS's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show' on the 29th, "The fact that President Yoon presided over this meeting directly for the first time in seven years and led the plenary session carries significant political meaning. It shows a strong will from the party and government to pay special attention to the low birthrate issue." He added, "Unlike the Moon Jae-in administration, which viewed the low birthrate problem from a feminist perspective, the president himself is showing interest and intends to have voices heard and participation from both men and women equally."
On the other hand, Park Sung-min, former Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said, "It seems like a rehash and a dud. Although it was packaged as if something groundbreaking was announced, much of the content is actually what has been announced before." He pointed out that 'consideration of support for frozen egg procedures' excludes single women. He also noted that the enactment of the Basic Child Act and the introduction of parental allowance had already been announced, and criticized the 'shortened working hours during childcare' plan by saying, "There are very few workers in small and medium-sized enterprises who can say, 'I need to leave two hours early to take care of my child.'"
Voices of criticism regarding the low birthrate measures have also emerged within the ruling party. Former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min wrote on his social media (SNS), "I am greatly disappointed by the measures announced by the Yoon Suk-yeol government. I expected concrete and groundbreaking measures that would give hope to young people and be practically impactful, but there is none." He also pointedly remarked, "Just two months ago, they said 'Hungarian-style cash support policies do not fit the Yoon Suk-yeol government's national agenda.' So does this government even have a national agenda to overcome the low birthrate?"
The Low Birthrate and Aging Society Committee explained that despite investing 280 trillion won over 15 years, the low birthrate problem was not solved due to the 'abstractness of the goals.' Hong Seok-cheol, standing member of the Low Birthrate and Aging Society Committee, said on CBS's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' "I think the goals were too abstract. When the 4th Basic Plan was created, the policy goal was 'to improve the quality of individual life.' Of course, it carries important meaning and is a necessary policy, but to respond to the low birthrate, more concrete policy goals are needed."
Standing member Hong said, "Creating an environment where people can marry, have children, and raise them well is the most concrete and realistic policy goal," adding, "280 trillion won is an enormous amount, so the public criticizes it, but if you look at these policies, they are just a compilation of many policies that each ministry was already implementing." Because various ministries have been implementing low birthrate measures piecemeal, even after spending 280 trillion won, there was no effect. He emphasized, "It is most important to completely review the basic plan and focus on selecting truly necessary and effective policies."
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