Lee Nak-yeon "3rd Disaster Relief Fund to be Paid from January... Early Support for Employment Retention Subsidy Needed"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jin-young] As the ruling party and government are pushing to provide the 3rd disaster relief fund starting in January to respond to the damage caused by the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), the Democratic Party of Korea on the 14th requested the government to review early support for the vulnerable group package support project and employment retention subsidies, giving momentum to the effort.

Lee Nak-yeon, leader of the Democratic Party, stated at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the morning of the same day, “We will devote all our personnel and resources to COVID-19 quarantine, livelihood stabilization, and economic recovery.”

Leader Lee said, “I mentioned yesterday that the customized damage relief fund reflected in next year’s budget should be quickly paid from January,” indicating that he conveyed the need for early execution to the government.

He continued, “The party asks the government to coordinate to promptly proceed with the support projects for small business owners, self-employed, and vulnerable groups scattered throughout the budget as a package. In addition, employment retention subsidies that help companies maintain employment should also be provided early,” he emphasized.

He added, “Small business owners and the self-employed are hanging at the edge of a cliff. Their income has sharply declined after COVID-19, but rent remains the same,” and further stated, “We will comprehensively review measures to strengthen the legal protection effectiveness regarding rent, expand tax reductions for benevolent landlords, and reduce the burden of fixed costs such as electricity and water bills.”

After the next year’s budget bill, which includes the budget for the 3rd disaster relief fund, was finalized in the National Assembly, the government began preparing and reviewing detailed plans such as the payment targets, amounts, and timing. The intention is to respond as quickly as possible to the intensified damage caused by the escalation of social distancing. The Democratic Party is known to have conveyed to the government the opinion that the payment timing should be advanced as much as possible due to the urgency of the damage.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.