The government should stop increasing electricity rates and keep minimum wage increases below 3 percent next year to help sectors affected by economic uncertainty survive, the Third Wednesday Club (三三會) said yesterday.
Taiwan this month raised electricity rates for heavy users by up to 15 percent, mostly affecting the industrial and commercial sectors. It was the first such increase in four years, and was intended to reflect soaring global oil prices and mitigate severe losses at state-run Taiwan Power Co (台電).
Lin Por-fong (林伯豐), chairman of the group of each business sector’s top 100 firms, said the increase punished companies that had contributed to the nation’s GDP growth and surging tax revenue, and created many jobs.
Photo: Liao Chia-ning, Taipei Times
The increase came as global inflation, monetary tightening and other challenges were starting to take a toll on companies’ orders and profit margins, said Lin, who is chairman at Taiwan Glass Industry Corp (台灣玻璃).
If the rates were to be further increased, it would weaken investment interest, Lin said.
Policymakers should exercise caution when reviewing minimum wages later this year, he said, urging them to increase them by less than 3 percent, as upward revisions might be inevitable.
The government’s minimum wage review panel increased them 5 percent last year, as Taiwan’s GDP expanded more than 6 percent.
Lin also urged the government to revise the nation’s energy mix, saying that policymakers should strike a balance.
The share of nuclear power should rise to 30 percent, as this would help Taiwan achieve net-zero carbon emissions without higher energy prices, and enable companies to engage in environmental protection and achieve sustainability.
President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration is seeking to phase out nuclear power in line with her campaign pledge to make Taiwan safer.
Lin said the EU recognizes the safety of nuclear power and regards it as green energy.
Moreover, billionaire investor and Microsoft Corp cofounder Bill Gates is working with Japan on the development of the next generation of nuclear reactors, which might enter commercial operation as early as in 2030.
Taiwan should have a more flexible nuclear power policy, he said.
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