[2023 National Audit] R&D Budget Dispute… Ruling Party "Accumulated Inefficiency" VS Opposition "Cut Due to President's Words"

On the 11th, during the National Assembly Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting and Communications Committee's audit of the Ministry of Science and ICT, a heated debate ensued over the cut in research and development (R&D) budget. Opposition lawmakers fiercely criticized it as a 'reckless sword dance,' while the ruling party countered that wasteful spending carried over from the previous administration must be corrected.

Minister Lee Jong-ho of the Ministry of Science and ICT said in his opening remarks, "There are criticisms that despite the quantitative growth of the R&D budget, structural reforms for qualitative growth are still insufficient," adding, "It is time to remove outdated practices and inefficiencies and to foster a healthy ecosystem that carries out top-level R&D, true R&D." The Ministry of Science and ICT has set next year's national R&D budget at 21.5 trillion won, a reduction of 3.45 trillion won compared to this year.

Minister Lee Jong-ho of the Ministry of Science and ICT is reporting on work at the National Assembly Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting and Communications Committee's audit held on the morning of the 11th at the Government Sejong Complex in Sejong City.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Opposition lawmakers pointed out the lack of clear criteria for the R&D budget cuts. Min Hyung-bae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said, "With just one word from the President, the R&D budget and the science and technology community have become a mess." Cho Seung-rae, also from the Democratic Party, claimed, "The R&D budget was slashed as if in a reckless sword dance," and added, "Although it must have proceeded according to established procedures, the President said no at the final approval stage."

There were also criticisms that budgets for projects emphasized as national tasks or major policies were actually reduced. Ko Min-jung, a Democratic Party lawmaker, pointed out that although President Yoon Suk-yeol declared at last month's UN General Assembly keynote speech that he would actively work to close the digital divide, the budgets related to resolving kiosk inconveniences and digital learning centers were cut. Min Hyung-bae said, "As the R&D budget is cut, national tasks are being shaken. Budgets for ultra-gap strategic technology development, autonomy and creativity-centered basic research, and securing local science and technology sovereignty were drastically reduced." Minister Lee responded, "Because the budget was streamlined, I believe we can proceed sufficiently. We will carry it out without any setbacks."

On the other hand, ruling party lawmakers emphasized efficiency. Kim Byung-wook of the People Power Party said, "In recent years, the R&D budget has rapidly increased, accumulating waste," and added, "No Nobel Prize has been awarded so far; we need to look into the fundamental problems." Park Sung-joong, also from the People Power Party, stated, "The R&D budget is precious taxpayers' money, but under the Moon Jae-in administration, it increased too rapidly, leading to much waste," and stressed, "Inefficiencies must be corrected."

Meanwhile, ICT issues were only briefly mentioned during the R&D audit. Park Wan-joo, an independent lawmaker, said, "LTE fees are actually three times more expensive than 5G," and requested, "Foreign countries have introduced integrated LTE and 5G rate plans; please consider revising the terms and conditions to negotiate with telecom companies."

Yoon Doo-hyun of the People Power Party urged the establishment of guidelines for calculating content fees so that K-content can secure competitiveness in response to overseas giant over-the-top (OTT) services. Park Yoon-kyu, 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, replied, "In the reauthorization conditions for the three IPTV companies, we ensured that content usage fees are fairly distributed using objective indicators," and added, "We will create the guidelines by the end of the year in consultation with the Korea Communications Commission."

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