The Taipei City Government yesterday cried foul over its outstanding national health insurance subsidy debts, saying it was unfair for the capital to shoulder NT$38 billion (US$1.2 billion) in payments for non-residents.
The problem stems from President Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) tenure as Taipei mayor, when the city government decided not to pay the fees because it disagreed with the way the bureau calculated the size of the city's workforce.
Local governments are required by law to pay one-third of the costs of medical treatment incurred in the previous year by residents in their jurisdiction. Taipei has insisted that a lack of funds has prevented it from paying the debts.
Past lawsuits resulted in a Supreme Administrative Court ruling against Taipei City Government, which was told to repay the debt it accrued between 1999 and 2002.
Addressing the matter of back payments, Premier Liu Chao-hsiuan (劉兆玄) has instructed the Department of Health to ask the city government to propose plots of land or other assets equal in value to those plots that had been confiscated from the local government as security against the unpaid debt, so that they could be returned to the local government to be developed.
Taipei City Finance Department head Chiu Da-chan (邱大展) yesterday said the city had found 20 plots of land with an estimated market value of NT$800 million (US$24.4 million), hoping to exchange them with the 31 lots seized by the central government.
Su Ying-kuei (蘇盈貴), commissioner of Taipei City's Labor Department, yesterday said that it was unfair to ask the city to cover people whose household registrations were not in the city.
While the city has a workforce of about 1.4 million, the city government pays the health insurance subsidy for 3.6 million people, he said.
Su criticized the central government for reducing the tax redistribution fund to local governments since July 1999 and thus diminishing the city treasury by NT$109.6 billion so far.
Taking business tax as an example, Su said lowering the business tax from 5 percent to 2 percent has taken NT$6 billion each year from city government coffers.
Su said it was “stupid” for the central government to confiscate land from the local government.
He said the central government's handling of the matter had “harmed” the local government.
“Isn't this an indication that they are very incompetent?” he asked.
Aftershocks from a magnitude 6.2 earthquake that struck off Yilan County at 3:45pm yesterday could reach a magnitude of 5 to 5.5, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Seismological Center technical officer Chiu Chun-ta (邱俊達) told a news conference that the epicenter of the temblor was more than 100km from Taiwan. Although predicted to measure between magnitude 5 and 5.5, the aftershocks would reach an intensity of 1 on Taiwan’s 7-tier scale, which gauges the actual effect of an earthquake, he said. The earthquake lasted longer in Taipei because the city is in a basin, he said. The quake’s epicenter was about 128.9km east-southeast
GENSLER SURVEY: ‘Economic infrastructure is not enough. A city needs to inspire pride, offer moments of joy and foster a sense of belonging,’ the company said Taipei was named the city with the “highest staying power” in the world by US-based design and architecture firm Gensler. The Taiwanese capital earned the top spot among 65 cities across six continents with 64 percent of Taipei respondents in a survey of 33,000 people saying they wanted to stay in the city. Rounding out the top five were Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City (61 percent), Singapore (59 percent), Sydney (58 percent) and Berlin (51 percent). Sixth to 10th place went to Monterrey, Mexico; Munich, Germany; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Vancouver; and Seoul. Cities in the US were ranked separately, with Minneapolis first at
The New Taipei City Government today warned about the often-overlooked dangers of playing in water, and recommended safe swimming destinations to cool off from the summer heat. The following locations in the city as safe and fun for those looking to enjoy the water: Chienshuiwan (淺水灣), Baishawan (白沙灣), Jhongjiao Bay (中角灣), Fulong Beach Resort (福隆海水浴場) and Sansia District’s (三峽) Dabao River (大豹溪), New Taipei City Tourism and Travel Department Director-General Yang Tsung-min (楊宗珉) said. Outdoor bodies of water have variables outside of human control, such as changing currents, differing elevations and environmental hazards, all of which can lead to accidents, Yang said. Sudden
Tropical Storm Podul has formed over waters north-northeast of Guam and is expected to approach the seas southeast of Taiwan next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. The 11th Pacific storm of the year developed at 2am over waters about 2,660km east of Oluanpi (歐鑾鼻), Pingtung County — Taiwan's southernmost tip. It is projected to move westward and could have its most significant impact on Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday next week, the CWA said. The agency did not rule out the possibility of issuing a sea warning at that time. According to the CWA's latest update, Podul is drifting west-northwest
RSS