Minister of Finance Yen Ching-chang (
The Ministry of Finance has arranged a European tour from June 23 to July 3. Yen and other finance ministry officials will visit London, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Zurich and Paris. The purpose of the trip is to attract foreign investors to Taiwan.
Yen made the remarks yesterday morning when he was asked by reporters about the planned effort to pass six outstanding bills crucial to financial reforms during an upcoming special legislative session.
Three opposition parties agreed to convene an extraordinary legislative session to push through major bills that failed to pass in the session that ended last Wednesday -- including six major bills related to financial reforms as well as 40 others.
"I hope the special session of the Legislative Yuan will be completed before June 20, and important financial bills are passed," Yen said.
He was referring to the Financial Holding Company Law and a bill on establishing a financial rehabilitation fund.
"The trip to Europe has already been arranged ... and it would be difficult to cancel the trip now," Yen said.
Nevertheless, Yen felt the trip would go smoother if certain financial reform measures had been passed by that time.
The Financial Holding Company Law is seen as a key tool in urging foreign investors to invest in Taiwan, and the opening of Taiwan's financial markets is inevitable, he said.
"If the legislature cannot pass the holding company law, our financial institutions will have a tough time competing with their international rivals," Yen said.
Yen said that if the financial rehabilitation fund is not established to help write off mounting bad debts at local financial institutions, the problem will not be solved.
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