Ruling and Opposition Floor Leaders' Meeting Starts with Tension... 10 Trillion Won Supplementary Budget Bill Faces Difficulties

Meeting Between Kwon Seong-dong and Park Chan-dae Led by Speaker Woo on the 31st
Ruling Party: "Supplementary Budget Must Be Passed"... Opposition: "It's an Empty Husk"
Difficulties Expected in Negotiating the Final Plenary Session in March

Under the chairmanship of National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-sik, the floor leaders of the ruling and opposition parties met, but tensions surfaced even before the formal meeting began. Significant differences in views on the government's announced 10 trillion won supplementary budget are expected to make discussions difficult.

Speaker Woo Won-shik and the floor leaders of the two major parties are meeting at the National Assembly on the 31st. From the left, Park Hyung-soo, Senior Deputy Floor Leader of the People Power Party, Kwon Seong-dong, Floor Leader, Speaker Woo, Park Chan-dae, Floor Leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, and Park Seong-jun, Senior Deputy Floor Leader. 2025.3.31 Photo by Kim Hyun-min

At 10 a.m. on the 31st, Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, and Park Chan-dae, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, met in the Speaker's office under Speaker Woo's chairmanship. Unlike Speaker Woo, the two floor leaders wore stern expressions and even engaged in a power struggle over the order of opening remarks. Floor Leader Kwon, without looking at Floor Leader Park, gestured with his palm and said, "You go first," to which Park deferred his turn. Eventually, Speaker Woo intervened and requested that Floor Leader Park speak first.

Sharp remarks continued regarding the key topic of the ruling and opposition meeting?the 10 trillion won essential supplementary budget (chugyeong) discussion. In his opening remarks, Floor Leader Park described the supplementary budget proposal as "an empty husk without substance," saying, "The scale is far too insufficient to revive people’s livelihoods and the economy, and they said that if the ruling and opposition agree on the purpose, they would then consult with relevant ministries to present a supplementary budget plan."

On the other hand, Floor Leader Kwon said, "This supplementary budget contains no contentious issues between the ruling and opposition and only includes urgently needed funds," adding, "I think after this supplementary budget is urgently passed, a separate discussion structure should be created for the proposals demanded by the ruling and opposition parties." Previously, the Democratic Party proposed a 35 trillion won supplementary budget including a 250,000 won consumption coupon for all citizens, while the ruling party proposed a 15 trillion won supplementary budget.

Negotiations on the schedule for the final plenary session of the March extraordinary session are also expected to be difficult. The opposition’s five parties plan to report an impeachment motion against Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok, and there is even talk within the opposition of a ‘double impeachment’ including Acting President and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. From the ruling party’s perspective, there is no reason to follow the opposition’s political scenario, making the plenary session schedule another front line of confrontation.

Floor Leader Park urged, "The People Power Party should cease all acts supporting the insurrection and actively cooperate in protecting the constitutional order." Floor Leader Kwon responded, "Talk of double impeachment is irrational," and demanded the withdrawal of the nomination of Ma Eun-hyuk as a Constitutional Court justice candidate.