With government expenditures rising and tax revenues sliding, Premier Yu Shyi-kun said yesterday the Cabinet is moving to abolish income-tax exemptions for public school teachers and military personnel.
Lawmakers from across party lines expressed approval for the planned tax reform but recommended an incremental approach to carry it out.
"All citizens are equal before law," the premier said in response to a question from DPP lawmaker Chen Mao-nan (
Yu hesitated to set a timetable but added he hoped the suggested reform can be reflected in the government's fiscal plan for next year.
To achieve that, the legislature must amend related tax codes before the end of this year. The premier said that the ministries of education and defense are studying the issue.
"I hope related agencies can soon arrive at a conclusion and put it in the budget plan for next year," Yu said.
The proposed tax reform has been talked about for more than a decade but has run aground due to strong protest from the demographic group and its lobbyists. The tax exemptions have been counted as part of their wages when they take their jobs.
With the economy in the doldrums, leaders from the four legislative caucuses all gave their conditional support for the tax-reform plan.
KMT legislative whip Lin Yi-shih (
"It is better for the government to examine whether the need for such exemptions still exists before taking any action," Lin said.
"Otherwise, the country may suffer if the tax reform deals a heavy blow to the morale of public school teachers and soldiers," Lin added.
To avoid that, he proposed removing the tax exemptions in phases to cushion its impact on the groups.
PFP legislative leader Chin Huei-chu (秦慧珠) agreed in part. She said it is fair to ask all citizens to pay income taxes but noted that military personnel usually work long hours and cannot take holidays off.
"The government is advised to review their salaries and fringe benefits before making them pay income taxes," Chin said.
Echoing a similar theme, TSU lawmaker Chen Cheng-lung (
DPP lawmaker Wang Tuoh (
"Nowadays soldiers and public school teachers make more money than private-sector workers do. The former enjoy summer and winter vacations that are not available to private-sector employees," Wang said.
The premier said he would not rule out a pay hike for public school teachers and soldiers, if it is deemed necessary.
Chen, the DPP lawmaker, went a step further and urged Yu to slash savings interest rates for retired public servants.
Chen noted that the group enjoys a preferential rate of 18 percent, whereas the average rate for the general public hovers around 2 percent.
The premier said that government employees who retire after July 1995 no longer enjoy these high interest rates.
But he refused to adjust already agreed-on interest rates, saying that public servants lived on low incomes before 1995 .
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it