1.May 2008 to March 2009: Pensions for socially and economically disadvantaged people in terms of funds and a health insurance premium subsidy, as well as free lunches for disadvantaged students. NT$16.71 billion
2.2008 to 2012: Subsidies for the purchase of energy-saving household appliances, such as LED light bulbs, solar heat collectors and solar water heaters, as well as to encourage drivers to replace petroleum-driven vehicles with vehicles powered by liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) or rechargeable electric batteries. NT$11.117 billion
3.Jan. 2008 to Dec. 2008: Provide funding to enterprises that can provide temporary job opportunities, hire the long-term unemployed or provide training for their employees. NT$483 million
4.Jan. 2008 to Sept. 2010: To raise the government’s preferential mortgage interest subsidy rate from 0.125 percent to 0.7 percent and to expand the quota allocation of loans to help young people buy their own homes and to provide the young and disadvantaged with a rent allowance. NT$4.45 billion
5.Aug. 2008 to Dec. 2008: To facilitate the construction of state infrastructure projects and to press local governments to speed up construction projects covered by a NT$58.3 billion budget designed to expand domestic demand. NT$58.3 billion
6.Jan. 2008 to Dec. 2010: Manufacturing, traditional industries and related technical industries to be granted a five-year tax exemption from enterprise income tax on domestic investments between last month and the end of next year. NT$37.62 billion
7.Six months from approval: To request the legislature review the Securities Transaction Tax Act (證券交易稅條例) and cut the 0.3 percent tax rate by half for six months to boost the stock market. Expecting to start in Oct: To open the capital markets to Chinese qualified domestic institutional investors (QDII) that would see an inflow of a maximum of US$1.125 billion in Chinese capital, planned to begin next month. NT$30 billion
8.2008 to Dec. 2011: To raise the percentage of the guaranty the government offers to small and medium-sized enterprises to facilitate bank loans and to implement a microfinance loan program to assist the middle-aged and women to start small businesses. NT$20.67 billion
9.Aug. 2008 to Dec. 2012: To help enterprises to explore newly developing markets in the Middle East, Brazil, Russia and China. NT$1.5 billion
10.To advance tax reform, including raising standard deductions and special deductions on income, disability and school tuition fees, as well as discussing reductions in enterprise income tax, inheritance tax and gift tax.
Total amount: NT$180.9 billion
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
CHINA POLICY: At the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China, the two sides issued strong support for Taiwan and condemned China’s actions in the South China Sea The US and EU issued a joint statement on Wednesday supporting Taiwan’s international participation, notably omitting the “one China” policy in a departure from previous similar statements, following high-level talks on China and the Indo-Pacific region. The statement also urged China to show restraint in the Taiwan Strait. US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and European External Action Service Secretary-General Stefano Sannino cochaired the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China and the sixth US-EU Indo-Pacific Consultations from Monday to Tuesday. Since the Indo-Pacific consultations were launched in 2021, references to the “one China” policy have appeared in every statement apart from the
A clandestine US Navy special missions unit colloquially known as SEAL Team 6 has been training for missions to assist Taiwan’s defense against an attack by China, the Financial Times said in a report yesterday. The navy commando team famous for killing Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad, Pakistan, has been conducting training to take part in a Taiwan conflict at its Dam Neck headquarters in Virginia Beach for more than one year, it said, citing sources familiar with the matter. “The secret training underlines the increased US focus on deterring China from attacking Taiwan, while stepping up preparations for such an event,”