Hong Nam-ki "Please Respect Authorities' Views on Fiscal Soundness"

National Assembly Government Questioning Session

Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, is responding during the government-related economic questions session held at the National Assembly plenary session on the 5th. 2021.2.5 [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Son Sun-hee] Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister for Economy, said on the 5th regarding the debate over the fiscal burden of the 4th disaster relief fund, "I hope the fiscal authorities' perspective on fiscal soundness will also be respected."

On the afternoon of the same day, during the National Assembly's government questioning session, in response to a question from Kim Byung-wook, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, about expansionary fiscal policy to support damage relief due to the COVID-19 situation, Hong said, "The government will actively strive to overcome difficulties 'within the scope of what is possible.'"

Hong expressed his principle agreement with the stance of "expansionary fiscal policy," stating, "I believe we have demonstrated through action that fiscal policy can play an active role following last year's COVID-19 crisis." He reminded of the fiscal role deployed to overcome the COVID-19 crisis, including the preparation of four supplementary budgets last year.

However, he repeatedly emphasized, "From the perspective of those in charge of fiscal policy, I ask that you also consider the fiscal balance, national debt, and fiscal soundness issues together."

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