National Assembly to vote on 2019 budget plan
국회 본회의서 2019년 예산안 처리…야3당 공동 규탄대회
It's long overdue but the National Assembly is set to vote on the 2019 budget plan later today.
On Thursday, the two main parties reached an agreement to settle the revised version of the spending bill.
However, that deal was criticized by minor opposition blocs as it did not include their demand to overhaul how elections are conducted.
We connect to our parliamentary correspondent Kim Min-ji.
Min-ji, how are things looking?
Daniel, a plenary session convened just about half an hour ago -- rescheduled from 4pm this afternoon.
Rival parties are at the moment voting on some 200 pending bills related to people's livelihoods.
Now, once they're done with that,.... they plan to adjourn the session until the budget bill is ready for a full floor vote.
The ruling Democratic Party and the main opposition Liberty Korea Party reached an agreement on Thursday to vote on the revised budget today.
However, it's unclear just exactly when it will pass -- given the work that still needs to be done.
What we do know at the moment is that there will be a cut to the proposed spending set aside for inter-Korean projects and job creation.
There will be an increase for infrastructure, as well as for the budget that will be used to tackle the low birth rate issue.
The budget isn't a total win for either party,... but they're happy they can settle the bill before the end of parliament's 100-day regular session, which closes this week.
But the agreement did not include commitment to reforming the country's electoral system -- something that the minor parties had been demanding.
So i guess it's a mixed situation there at the moment.
Are we in for a bit of stalemate?
Well, the minor opposition parties have started an indefinite period of sit-in demonstrations,... with some party chairs even on a hunger strike.
They had been seeking a commitment to revamping the electoral system as a condition for passing the budget.
They want to adopt a new proportional representation system -- under which seats would be allocated based on the proportion of the vote won by each party.
But, the ruling and main opposition parties said that it's matter than needs to be dealt with separately.
The minor opposition parties accused the bigger parties of collusion to prioritize their vested interests over the people's wishes.
It's unclear whether the minor opposition will cooperate in the budget's passage,... but even without them, they together have enough seats in parliament to pass the budget.
If passed, it comes five days after the legal deadline of December second.
Back to you, Daniel.
It's long overdue but the National Assembly is set to vote on the 2019 budget plan later today.
On Thursday, the two main parties reached an agreement to settle the revised version of the spending bill.
However, that deal was criticized by minor opposition blocs as it did not include their demand to overhaul how elections are conducted.
We connect to our parliamentary correspondent Kim Min-ji.
Min-ji, how are things looking?
Daniel, a plenary session convened just about half an hour ago -- rescheduled from 4pm this afternoon.
Rival parties are at the moment voting on some 200 pending bills related to people's livelihoods.
Now, once they're done with that,.... they plan to adjourn the session until the budget bill is ready for a full floor vote.
The ruling Democratic Party and the main opposition Liberty Korea Party reached an agreement on Thursday to vote on the revised budget today.
However, it's unclear just exactly when it will pass -- given the work that still needs to be done.
What we do know at the moment is that there will be a cut to the proposed spending set aside for inter-Korean projects and job creation.
There will be an increase for infrastructure, as well as for the budget that will be used to tackle the low birth rate issue.
The budget isn't a total win for either party,... but they're happy they can settle the bill before the end of parliament's 100-day regular session, which closes this week.
But the agreement did not include commitment to reforming the country's electoral system -- something that the minor parties had been demanding.
So i guess it's a mixed situation there at the moment.
Are we in for a bit of stalemate?
Well, the minor opposition parties have started an indefinite period of sit-in demonstrations,... with some party chairs even on a hunger strike.
They had been seeking a commitment to revamping the electoral system as a condition for passing the budget.
They want to adopt a new proportional representation system -- under which seats would be allocated based on the proportion of the vote won by each party.
But, the ruling and main opposition parties said that it's matter than needs to be dealt with separately.
The minor opposition parties accused the bigger parties of collusion to prioritize their vested interests over the people's wishes.
It's unclear whether the minor opposition will cooperate in the budget's passage,... but even without them, they together have enough seats in parliament to pass the budget.
If passed, it comes five days after the legal deadline of December second.
Back to you, Daniel.