The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) have different ideas on what should be the focus of the legislature’s extra session, which is scheduled to be held between June 13 and June 27, the Legislative Yuan said yesterday.
KMT caucus whip Lin Hung-chih (林鴻池) said the party’s legislative caucus hopes primarily to address the referendum proposal on the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮), the Executive Yuan’s organic reform and the pension reform plan.
Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) has said that President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration was willing to put the continued construction of the nuclear plant to a referendum, and even pledged to step down if the public voted against continuing construction of the plant.
However, the DPP said that the KMT was trying to wiggle its way out of the issue and claimed that the wording of the referendum was problematic.
“We should not be deadlocked on the issue just because of different ideologies,” Lin said.
Meanwhile, DPP caucus whip Pan Men-an (潘孟安) said that the DPP caucus hoped the extra session would examine the draft act on promoting a nuclear-free homeland (非核家園推動法), the amendments to the Public Debt Act (公共債務法) and the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法), and the inking of a draft anti-monopoly media law (反媒體壟斷法).
Pan said the party had made a plan on how to handle cross-strait liaison offices, adding that he hoped the legislature’s Internal Administration Committee would closely compare it with the Executive Yuan’s version.
On the issue of pension reform, Pan said the DPP caucus was cautious about the amount of public opposition and the potential impact of the move.
However, Pan said that due to the differences between the KMT caucus and the Executive Yuan, the party felt that pension reforms for military personnel, civil servants and public school teachers should be prioritized.
“We will not be raising any motions to revise the Labor Insurance Fund or the Labor Pension Fund during the extra session,” Pan said, adding that the party did not feel these reforms were as pressing.
Tropical depression TD22, which was over waters south of the Ryukyu Islands, is likely to develop into a tropical storm by this morning and pose a significant threat to Taiwan next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The depression is likely to strengthen into a tropical storm named Krathon as it moves south and then veers north toward waters off Taiwan’s eastern coast, CWA forecaster Hsu Chung-yi (徐仲毅) said. Given the favorable environmental conditions for its development, TD22’s intensity would reach at least typhoon levels, Hsu said. As of 2pm yesterday, the tropical depression was about 610km east-southeast of Taiwan proper’s
RESTRICTIONS: All food items imported from the five prefectures must be accompanied by radiation and origin certificates, and undergo batch-by-batch inspection The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday announced that almost all produce from five Japanese prefectures affected by the 2011 Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant disaster would now be allowed into Taiwan. The five are Fukushima, Gunma, Chiba, Ibaraki and Tochigi. The only items that would still be blocked from being imported into the nation are those that are still banned from being circulated in Japan, the FDA added. With the removal of the ban, items including mushrooms, the meat of wild birds and other wild animals, and koshiabura” (foraged vegetables) would now be permitted to enter Taiwan, along with the other
Four factors led to the declaration of a typhoon day and the cancelation of classes yesterday, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. Work and classes were canceled across Taiwan yesterday as Typhoon Krathon was forecast to make landfall in the southern part of the country. However, northern Taiwan had only heavy winds during the day and rain in the evening, leading some to criticize the cancelation. Speaking at a Taipei City Council meeting yesterday, Chiang said the decision was made due to the possibility of landslides and other problems in mountainous areas, the need to avoid a potentially dangerous commute for those
A new tropical storm is expected to form by early tomorrow morning, potentially developing into a medium-strength typhoon that is to affect Taiwan through Wednesday next week, the Central Weather Administration said today. There are currently two tropical systems circulating to the east of Taiwan, agency forecaster Hsu Chung-yi (徐仲毅) said. The one currently north of Guam developed into Tropical Storm Gebi this afternoon and is expected to veer toward Japan without affecting Taiwan, Hsu said. Another tropical depression is 600km from the east coast and is likely to develp into the named storm Krathon either late tonight or early tomorrow, he said. This
RSS