Taiwan's economic growth is should reach 4.5 percent next year, with the job situation also expected to improve and prices to rise slightly, Premier Yu Shyi-kun said yesterday.
Yu also announced that the government's income, NT$1,402.7 billion as listed in the annual budget, would increase by 3.9 percent next year compared with this year. Expenditures, Yu said, would be NT$1,635.6 billion, marking a 2.4 percent increase from this year.
Yu made the announcements when giving the 2005 budget report in the Legislative Yuan yesterday.
Yu pointed out that government expenses next year are expected to be NT$232.9 billion more than revenues. This, together with the NT$60 billion needed to pay back the government's debts, means the government will face a funds shortage of NT$292.9 billion.
"We will issue NT$255 billion of government bonds and use the NT$37.9 billion budget surplus from two years ago to cover the difference," Yu said.
Yu said next year's budget distribution will focus on promoting identification with Taiwan and respect for a pluralistic culture, building a social security network, continuing the "Challenge 2008" national development program, developing technologies, investing in education and subsidizing regional governments.
"For income, the government will continue to review the tax system. Regarding expenses, the government will promote the government restructuring," Yu said.
Yu also elaborated on the administration's economic performance this year.
"In the first six months of this year, our country's economic growth hit 7.2 percent and it is estimated that it will reach 5.9 percent for the whole year. This is the highest in the past seven years," Yu said.
"The unemployment rate fell to 4.5 percent during January to July, the lowest in the past four years. In the IMD's [Institute for Management Development's] latest country competitiveness report, Taiwan has also leaped from the rank of 17 to 12," he said.
In related news, head of the Cabinet's Research, Development and Evaluation Commission Yeh Jiunn-rong (葉俊榮) said yesterday that after the central government is restructured, the Cabinet's temporary disaster relief center will become a permanent fixture under the Executive Yuan.
Yeh made the comment when reporting to the Taiwan Solidarity Union caucus on the Organic Law of the Executive Yuan (行政院組織法).
Currently, the government only sets up the disaster relief center when a major natural disaster occurs, but the increased damage from major tropical storms in recent years seems to have pushed the government into considering increased disaster preparedness.
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