Invitation of Prime Minister Nominee Imminent... Yoon Administration on Alert to Realize 'Responsible Prime Minister'

Interest in Whether Authority Will Expand Including Organizational Restructuring and Ministerial Appointments
"Prime Minister Nominee Will Receive Recommendation Rights"
Some Say It's Too Early to Judge... "It's a Matter for the President-Elect and Prime Minister Nominee to Discuss"

[Asia Economy Reporters Donghoon Jeong and Boryeong Geum] With the nomination of the Prime Minister as the first cabinet appointment of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, it is expected to influence the direction and pace of cabinet formation, including government organization reform and ministerial appointments. Additionally, since there has been a declaration to significantly delegate authority to the Prime Minister, attention is focused on whether the inaugural Prime Minister’s powers will be expanded.

According to the current Presidential Transition Committee Act, the nominee for Prime Minister holds the authority to decide on ministerial candidates. The process involves the nominee’s review work along with reflecting opinions from the transition committee and others.

The Yoon transition team indicated, "After the personnel review process is conducted, there will be an announcement of ministerial candidates upon the Prime Minister nominee’s recommendation," suggesting there will be a time gap between the Prime Minister nominee’s appointment and the announcement.

The inaugural Prime Minister of the next government must lead the administration amid challenges such as the COVID-19 impact, the global supply chain crisis, and a ‘minority government with opposition majority’ National Assembly. Because of this, Yoon has consistently emphasized an economic dream team and cooperative governance.

Han Deok-su, a leading candidate for Prime Minister who has prior experience in the role, is highly expected to perform smoothly. Notably, during his presidential campaign, Yoon pledged to strengthen the Prime Minister’s authority. Therefore, it is anticipated that the Prime Minister will be granted stronger powers to oversee all ministries and cooperate with the National Assembly for legislation, embodying a ‘responsible Prime Minister’ system.

The structure will have the President responsible for foreign affairs and national security, while the Prime Minister will be accountable for domestic affairs. In the ‘Government Operation Plan’ of his campaign pledges, Yoon explicitly stated, "The autonomy and responsibility of the Prime Minister and ministers will increase." The aim is to abolish the imperial presidency and transform the government into a system focused solely on tasks that only the government can perform. However, some cautious views have been expressed regarding the implementation of the responsible Prime Minister system. Since there is no legal basis for the responsible Prime Minister system, the President’s will is paramount. A key official from the transition committee said, "Whether to implement the responsible Prime Minister system is a matter to be separately discussed between the President-elect and the Prime Minister nominee."