Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) lawmakers yesterday said the party would propose a motion to partially fund the government, prioritizing spending for the economy, livelihood and infrastructure.
TPP deputy caucus whip Chang Chi-kai (張?楷) told a news conference that the party is facilitating the legislature’s review of 13 spending items in the annual budget, totaling NT$200 billion (US$6.33 billion).
It includes funding for the TPass program, childbirth subsidies, domestic radiopharmaceuticals supply chain investment, flood management and sports promotion, he said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Budgets for bolstering the resilience of digital infrastructure, upgrading the national emergency rescue service’s SA365N helicopters and building a highway in the Kaohsiung-Pingtung region would also be included, he added.
Improving bridges, upgrading water purification and distribution facilities, and spending on museums and an office building for the Central Election Commission’s Lienchiang County branch are among the budget items the party supports, Chang said.
The TPP’s support for the rest of the government budget is contingent on President William Lai’s (賴清德) willingness to reciprocate by agreeing to the party’s demands regarding government worker pensions, he said.
TPP Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) said the party had reached a consensus with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) on the budget and that the opposition would finalize details at a later meeting.
Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) slammed the TPP’s announcement, saying that the proposed budget deal overlooked crucial spending items after 140 days of delays.
The KMT-TPP alliance continues to refuse to deliberate the special defense budget, the proposal to invest in artificial intelligence and quantum computing research, underground rail plans in Taoyuan, and new buildings for public schools, she said.
The opposition showed that it is interested only in backing its own bills and is more than willing to block equally important, if not far more critical, allocations for the nation’s development, Lee said, urging the KMT and the TPP to pass the budget before time runs out for this legislative session, of which 12 days remain.
Additional reporting by Chen Yu-fu
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