The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislative caucus allegedly plans to hinder the third reading of the NT$410 billion (US$14 billion) special budget today, aiming to request an additional NT$230 billion be allocated for universal NT$10,000 cash handouts, raising the total budget to NT$640 billion.
Not a single dollar would be passed in today’s Legislative Yuan vote, and the KMT is not willing to budge on striking the proposed NT$100 billion Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) subsidy, KMT Think Tank deputy director Ling Tao (凌濤) said yesterday.
The Executive Yuan said that the cash handouts would push the government and public finances into crisis and could trigger inflation, urging the Legislative Yuan to carefully consider the proposal.
Photo: Shih Hsiao-kuang, Taipei Times
The Cabinet on April 24 approved a NT$410 billion special budget to enhance national security, and protect the economy and local industries in light of US tariffs, including NT$93 billion for “economic resilience” to support supply chain relocation, and “dual-axis transformation” to focus on digital and net zero technologies.
It also included NT$150 billion for “whole-of-society defense resilience” and proposed an additional NT$100 billion subsidy for Taipower.
The subsidy is intended to offset Taipower’s mounting losses of NT$420 billion as of the end of last year, after it froze electricity rates for households and industries in line with government policy, Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said yesterday.
President William Lai (賴清德) and Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) have consulted with front-line industry experts who hope that stabilizing electricity prices would help to counter the effects of US tariffs, Lee said.
The KMT is standing with the public, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in hoping that Taiwan can counter the effects of US tariffs, Ling said.
KMT Legislator Lai Shyh-bao (賴士葆) said that although the party supports the NT$150 whole-of-society budget, it believes it should be allocated from a special or supplementary budget.
Lai Shyh-bao said he consulted with Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝), who made no promises that Taipower would freeze electricity prices on receiving the subsidy, which is unacceptable and requires further deliberation on the budget.
Additional reporting from Shih Hsiao-kuang and CNA
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday briefed her party’s Central Standing Committee regarding her scheduled visit to the US between Monday next week and June 16, saying that her purpose would be to persuade the US that the Republic of China (ROC) Constitution was a “one China” constitution that would foster stable and peaceful cross-strait relations. The ROC Constitution is the most important defense for all Taiwanese citizens, as it upholds our democracy and has contributed to our robust economy, which aligns with international and US interests, she said. “We would not be troublemakers and drag the US under,”
RSS