Kwang-jae Lee: "Basic Income, Either Unnecessary or Too Small... No Significant Effect"

"Major Investment in Education Needed Through Fiscal Reform"

Lee Kwang-jae, Member of the Democratic Party of Korea./Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Cheol-eung] Lee Kwang-jae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea who declared his candidacy for the presidential election, evaluated Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung's basic income theory as "having little effect compared to the money spent." He argues that welfare budgets should be expanded through fiscal reform to focus on education and childcare.

In an interview with Asia Economy at the National Assembly Members' Office Building on the 7th, Lee said, "It will be difficult to implement basic income fully, and it will inevitably be experimental," adding, "For people who have (economic) leeway, it is an unnecessary income, and for those who do not, it is too little income. However, the national budget required is too large."

Governor Lee has proposed securing 25 trillion won through budget cuts in the short term and paying 250,000 won twice a year per person.

Lee said, "If it is about 40,000 won per month, the value of the money is low for those in difficulty, and for wealthy people, they would say, 'Why are you giving that to me?'" He added, "Basic income has little effect compared to the money spent."

He suggested fiscal reform as one of the measures to resolve polarization and emphasized investment in education. Lee said, "The priority of the budget must be fundamentally changed," and "The flow of money should be directed toward massive investment in education such as childcare."

He continued, "Isn't the reason why it is difficult to solve the low birthrate problem because of the hardships of raising children?" and emphasized, "The state should take responsibility for the world's best education and childcare until children enter elementary school."

He believes that welfare debates are desirable but should proceed with sufficient social consensus. Lee said, "When I meet people in their 20s, they say, 'Who asked for money?' There are many complaints that this might put them in debt later or that it is just for votes during elections," adding, "There is a need to create a bipartisan consultative body to discuss welfare spending."

He added, "One of the most important welfare aspects is jobs, and in that regard, we must definitely move toward becoming a startup nation."

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