Yoon: "Will Reduce Heavy Taxation on Multi-Homeowners and Tax Burden Transfer to Vulnerable Tenants" (Update)

National Task Review Meeting 'Livelihood & Economy' Session
"Villa King Death" - "Ministry of Land and Ministry of Justice Urged to Form Joint Tenant Legal Support TF"
Regarding Health Insurance Reform: "Protect Innocent Subscribers... Will Make It Fair"
Measures Against Crimes Against Women: "Will Quickly Establish Crime Prevention and Victim Protection Measures"
In Response to Requests for Support for Elderly and Vulnerable Households... Yoon Proposes 'Elderly Communal Housing'

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] On the 15th, President Yoon Suk-yeol stated that the reason for promoting tax relief for multi-homeowners is "to create conditions that allow tenants, who are in a disadvantaged position in the market, to rent at low prices." He also reiterated his commitment to reform the National Health Insurance system in a way that prevents harm to honest subscribers.

At the first session of the 1st National Task Check Meeting, titled 'Livelihood and Economy,' held at the Blue House State Guest House from 2 p.m. that day, President Yoon said, "The heavy taxation on multi-homeowners is almost entirely passed on to economically vulnerable tenants, which is the law of the market."

On the 15th, citizens are watching the National Task Inspection Meeting chaired by President Yoon Seok-yeol in the Seoul Station waiting room. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

President Yoon went on to criticize the previous administration's complex regulations for causing housing prices to rise and emphasized the need to quickly improve demand regulations. He said, "Until I took office, housing prices soared uncontrollably and transaction volumes shrank due to these unreasonable complex regulations on both supply and demand sides," adding, "Even if these are phenomena caused by wrong policies, removing them all at once could cause market confusion and ultimately inconvenience the public, so we need to adjust the pace of market normalization. However, since housing prices are currently declining due to high interest rates, we will make our best efforts to stabilize the market by easing demand regulations at a somewhat faster pace."

He clearly stated that real estate issues should not be resolved through political logic. President Yoon said, "The rise and fall of housing prices should fundamentally follow market logic, but the government must carefully adjust the pace to manage it predictably. Real estate issues should not be trapped in political logic or ideology."

In response to a citizen panelist's concern that tenants might not be able to recover their deposits due to falling housing and jeonse prices, President Yoon expressed sympathy and explained that he requested the formation of a so-called 'Tenant Joint Legal Support Task Force (TF)' related to the death of the so-called 'Villa King.'

President Yoon said, "As a former legal professional, I have given this issue considerable legal thought and held meetings," promising, "We will create a joint legal support TF for jeonse tenants to provide legal assistance and strive to ensure they can quickly obtain court orders for registration and enjoy the benefits of jeonse deposit return guarantees." He added, "Managing rental properties of over 1,000 units requires a systematic system; if not, most cases are fraud crimes," and pledged, "We will pay close attention and make every effort to prevent harm to ordinary citizens."

Regarding the purpose of National Health Insurance reform, he emphasized 'protecting honest insurance subscribers.' President Yoon explained, "The health insurance system is operated so that when I or my family suffer from severe illnesses that require significant expenses, we can receive proper treatment and recover health without worrying about the cost (treatment fees). We intend to normalize it according to its original purpose."

He continued, "There are people who visit hospitals thousands of times a year, so-called 'medical shopping.' There are also cases of unlimited use of expensive MRI scans," emphasizing, "We need to properly review and evaluate these cases so that insurance subscribers can fairly receive support for severe illnesses and essential medical care."

He also drew a line regarding concerns raised about the 'reduction in health insurance coverage.' President Yoon explained, "We will establish a principle called the 'medical judgement rule' to ensure that normal medical decisions are not excessively restricted under the pretext of over-treatment, which is undesirable." He added, "We will also establish an effective appeal system in the review process so that our medical insurance finances are properly used for all citizens, and our government will design and operate this well."

When asked about measures against serious crimes involving women, he promised swift environmental improvements. President Yoon said, "A society where women feel unsafe is a society where the entire nation is unstable," adding, "This is not a problem to be addressed slowly with long-term plans but requires very rapid creation of an environment where women do not feel insecure." He further stated, "We need to design substantive and procedural laws that can strongly respond to sexual crimes, stalking, and violent crimes against women, and strengthen victim support facilities and measures."

Regarding drug crimes, he said, "About ten years ago, our country was considered a drug-free zone, but at some point, the prosecution stopped handling these cases, leaving the police to bear all the burden, which I think has reduced efficiency in information sharing and investigative cooperation," indirectly criticizing the 'Prosecution Investigation Authority Reform' that weakened the prosecution's drug crime investigation authority. He also mentioned, "The fact that drug prices are falling means the state has not cracked down, which is frankly embarrassing."

After receiving the microphone, Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon emphasized, "We will conduct strong crackdowns and punishments on distribution and manufacturing and do our best in treatment and rehabilitation," adding, "In September, we restored part of the prosecution's drug investigation authority that was abolished by the 'Prosecution Investigation Authority Reform.' The prosecution's special team will strictly crack down on distribution and manufacturing."

Regarding welfare policies for vulnerable households, President Yoon stated, "It is not a problem that can be solved by welfare workers at community centers running around here and there; we will design the system well." He proposed increasing welfare workers, providing incentives to village chiefs and district heads, and establishing 'senior communal housing' in village halls at the ri (village) level as alternatives. He especially emphasized, "I believe the fundamental solution is to continue creating mixed-generation communal housing, not just for seniors but also for young people," urging the Ministry of Health and Welfare to promote this.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

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