Byungtae Lee, Advisor to Junpyo Hong, Proposes Solutions for Korean Economy at Democratic Party Event: "Social Compromise and Regulatory Reform Needed"

Hong's Advisor Stresses Regulatory Reform at Democratic Party Event
Professor Byungtae Lee: "Benchmarking German-Style Structural Reform"
Jaemyung Lee Also Highlights the Importance of Regulatory Reform

Byungtae Lee, KAIST Emeritus Professor and former advisor to former Daegu Mayor Junpyo Hong, introduced structural reform measures for the Korean economy at a Democratic Party of Korea event. Professor Lee emphasized the importance of regulatory reform.

On May 26, a forum titled "The Path of an Innovative Government for Economic Growth" was held at the National Assembly. The event was organized by the Democratic Party’s Future Economic Growth Strategy Committee and hosted by Democratic Party Members of Parliament Seongho Jeong and Eonjoo Lee.

Professor Byungtae Lee, KAIST Emeritus Professor. Provided by Eonjoo Lee, Democratic Party of Korea Member of Parliament

At the event, Professor Lee, who previously served as the head of policy for Hong’s presidential campaign, diagnosed the root causes of Korea’s structural economic crisis and proposed solutions. He cited the structural reforms achieved through social compromise by Germany’s progressive government as a successful example. He introduced the labor market structural reforms led by Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder’s Social Democratic government, as well as the welfare reforms and the abolition of inheritance and gift taxes implemented by Sweden’s Social Democratic government, as models of success.

In addition, Professor Lee identified regulatory reform as a way to promote economic growth in Korea. Specifically, he proposed expanding regulatory sandboxes and free zones, reducing civil servant intervention through the automation of administrative procedures such as e-government, delegating economic regulatory authority to local governments, and directly reforming regulations.

It is noteworthy that Democratic Party presidential candidate Jaemyung Lee also emphasized regulatory reform the previous day. Candidate Lee stated, "Currently, we operate under a positive regulatory system where only what is explicitly permitted is allowed. This causes bureaucrats to become more conservative, making it difficult to implement necessary changes on the ground." He added, "For regulations in advanced industries, we are considering a direction where we clearly define what is prohibited, allow what is possible, and add further regulations as needed after the fact." He also announced, "We will promptly pursue measures to abolish or minimize regulations that exist merely for administrative convenience."