"Nakyungwon and Yunsanghyun Change Stance to 'Accept Electoral Reform'... Ruling Party Says 'Discuss in 22nd Assembly'"

Changes in Some Party Leadership Candidates' Trends
Yoo Kyung-jun and Yoo Seung-min: "No Pension Reform Without Structural Reform"
Party Leadership: "Must Discuss in the 22nd Term"

Rival candidates for the leadership of the People Power Party have drawn attention by expressing a stance of 'accepting for now' regarding the pension parameter reform (adjustment of contribution rates and income replacement rates) proposed by the Democratic Party of Korea. However, the ruling party leadership maintains the position that fundamental reform must be carried out concurrently with structural reform in the next National Assembly, making it unlikely for the ruling and opposition parties to reach an agreement.

Senior ruling party figures Na Kyung-won, the elected representative of the People Power Party, and Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun shifted from their previous positions on the 27th, voicing that they should accept the proposal from Lee Jae-myung. After a forum hosted by the Korea Newspaper Editors Association held at the Korea Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, Na told reporters, "The most ideal pension reform would be to complete everything including structural reform within this year, but realistically, the formation of the National Assembly is not easy, and confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties is expected," adding, "Isn't it right to at least proceed with the parameter reform related to pension reform proposed by Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party, in the 21st National Assembly?"

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 27th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Rep. Yoon also said on YTN radio that "Although there is a political intention to use the pension reform plan as a pretext while the Democratic Party pushes through special prosecutor laws and others," he added, "It is extremely difficult to reach an agreement like this, but it is better to do this at least." Earlier, Rep. Kim Mi-ae (People Power Party Pension Special Committee member) and former Rep. Yoon Hee-sook of the People Power Party pointed out that the party should accept Lee Jae-myung’s proposal. Lee stated that he would accept the parameter reform plan, which is known to have been proposed by the ruling party, setting the National Pension contribution rate at 13% and the income replacement rate at 44%.

On the other hand, the party leadership reiterated that they cannot accept parameter reform without structural reform. The Democratic Party’s pension reform plan raises the contribution rate by 4 percentage points from 9% to 13% and the income replacement rate by 4 percentage points from 40% to 44%, but they emphasize that this plan only slightly advances the fund depletion timeline and is not a genuine pension reform.

Chu Kyung-ho, floor leader of the People Power Party, is attending the emergency countermeasure committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 27th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Yoo Kyung-joon, the ruling party’s floor whip on the National Assembly’s Pension Reform Special Committee, said in a phone interview that "the problem is not only parameter reform but also many contentious supplementary provisions," adding, "What the Democratic Party is currently saying is nothing more than political offense." Yoo explained, "Although it seems like a major agreement has been reached, in reality, no detailed discussions have taken place," and "The implications and supplementary conditions hidden within the numbers have not been discussed at all." Former Rep. Yoo Seung-min also pointed out, "Raising both the contribution rate and the income replacement rate by 4 percentage points is not reform but a mere shell game." Yoo said, "To simultaneously achieve pension financial stability and secure retirement income, it is impossible to manipulate parameters alone," adding, "Structural reform and fiscal input must be carried out alongside parameter adjustments."

The People Power Party leadership’s position is to reconsider the issue in the 22nd National Assembly. On the morning of the 27th, after a meeting between ruling and opposition floor leaders chaired by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Rep. Choo Kyung-ho, the People Power Party floor leader, told reporters, "Regarding pensions, we conveyed that it is difficult to handle this within the current National Assembly with our existing stance," and added, "We discussed moving forward with speed through bipartisan agreement in the 22nd National Assembly."