Taichung City's proposed Guggen-heim Museum branch became the focus of the legislature's extra session yesterday as legislators and Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) expressed concern over the fate of the project, but Premier Yu Shyi-kun said the pan-blue camp had obstructed the entire process in the first place.
\nGuggenheim is one of the projects provisionally included in the Executive Yuan's NT$500 billion 10 key infrastructure projects package, but the Cabinet has only prepared NT$36.5 billion for two ongoing projects: the "third-generation highway" and MRT systems in northern, central and southern Taiwan.
\n"Premier Yu promised me that he will work hard to allow the special budget for the museum to be prepared for next year, and that it will be sent to the legislature for review together with the annual budget for next year," Wang said. "The premier also said that the government was willing to help the museum with capital flow until the end of this year."
\nWang said that after the Executive Yuan submitted the budget plan to the legislature, he suggested to Yu that it make an amendment to include the budget for the Guggenheim.
\nHe said that after the amendment was sent to the legislature, the amendment could be passed and the budget granted.
\n"But Premier Yu said to me that it was difficult to push the amendment through, that there was no rush now and that the Executive Yuan could wait a bit longer before it prepares the special budget for the museum next year," Wang said.
\nHe also said Yu promised that if the museum needed funding for planning and other preparatory work, the government would be willing to help it.
\nTwo days ago legislators from Taichung City also questioned Yu over why the Executive Yuan failed to prepare the budget for the museum this year.
\nhigh threshold
\nYu blamed the situation on the pan-blue camp for setting a high threshold in the Special Statute for Increasing Investment in Public Construction (
HOT-SPRING RETREAT: A hotel in Japan incurred a loss of about US$1,846 after a Taiwanese man failed to show up for his reservation due to a misunderstood message A Taiwanese man who failed to show up for a hotel reservation in Japan has apologized and offered compensation, the hotel said yesterday. The man, surnamed Lee (李), reserved a room at the Yufuin Tsubaki hot-spring hotel in Oita for the Lunar New Year holiday, but failed to show up on Friday. Lee yesterday called the hotel to apologize and offered to compensate the losses caused by his failure to show up, a hotel employee surnamed Yashiro said. Lee’s wife also called on Sunday to apologize, she said. Lee had booked a two-night stay with upscale seafood and beef meals, the hotel said. His
Two Taiwanese Americans were among those killed in a mass shooting at a dance studio in Monterey Park, California, on Saturday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Monday. The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles (TECO LA) said it contacted local authorities, who confirmed that two of the 11 killed in the shooting were Taiwanese Americans. “TECO LA conveys our heartfelt condolences to the victims and their families, and sends our prayers to the injured for a speedy recovery,” it said in a statement. The office said it is assisting the relatives of one of the victims to travel from
A senior US senator on Monday questioned the willingness of some US allies to help defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion. Although Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) expects the US and Japan to respond in a war in the Taiwan Strait, he was “a little less confident what our other allies would do,” US Senator John Cornyn said. Australia and New Zealand have voiced support for Taiwan, but it “is a far cry from committing troops to repel an invasion,” Cornyn said during a discussion on China, Russia and the state of US military readiness at a forum hosted
Whisky connoisseurs are a rapidly growing demographic in Taiwan, driving prices ever higher as collectors vie for the most coveted editions. Although not a new pastime, whisky collection has been picking up steam in recent years. According to the Scotch Whisky Association, Taiwan was the third-largest buyer of Scotch whisky in 2021 in monetary terms. One collector, surnamed Fu (傅), said there are many types of whisky that are ripe for collecting. One that has skyrocketed in price in recent years is the Macallan 12-year-old Gran Reserva, which bears a striking purple label, said Fu, who has more than 10 years of experience as