New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate, yesterday pledged to raise the monthly pension for farmers aged 65 or older to NT$10,000 from NT$7,550.
The subsidy for elderly farmers is adjusted every years, and is to rise to NT$8,080 next year, which would represent an increase of only NT$530 over a four-year period, Hou said.
Photo: Liu Hsiao-hsin, Taipei Times
BETTER SUPPORT
This support for senior farmers is “really low, really low,” Hou said.
While inflation has been a grave concern for everyone in recent years, people working in the agriculture and fisheries industries, especially older farmers, tend to be economically disadvantaged compared with others, Hou said, adding that the government should provide them with better support.
Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱), spokesman for the Democratic Progressive Party’s presidential nominee, Vice President William Lai (賴清德), said Hou’s proposal was “a political ploy” and an “empty promise.”
Hou did not specify a timeline for his proposal, and only stated that the pension would be increased each year, “leaving people wondering if it will be implemented in four years, eight years, or 10 years,” Chen said.
At present, people 65 or older who have been enrolled in the farmers’ health insurance program for 15 years or more are entitled to a monthly pension of NT$7,550.
On Sept. 14, the Cabinet announced that the monthly pension payout for senior farmers would be raised to NT$8,080 from Jan. 1 next year.
KO OFF TO US
In other news, Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) is to set out on a four-day trip to the US on Sunday, the party said on Monday.
The visit — which follows a 21-day trip to the US Ko made in April prior to his formal nomination by the party — would be spent entirely in California, and primarily focus on economics, technology and education, it said.
After arriving in San Francisco on Sunday morning, Ko is to attend a San Francisco-Taipei sister city welcoming event and a forum on medical technology investment, it said.
On the second day of the trip, Ko is to tour an educational technology company, visit an area think tank and meet with Taiwanese students, before visiting an energy company and an electric vehicle company on Tuesday next week, it said.
On the final day of his visit, Ko is to travel to Los Angeles for another company visit and attend a launch event for supporters of his campaign in southern California, the TPP said, adding that he is to leave Los Angeles on Thursday next week and arrive in Taiwan the following day.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
Taiwan successfully defended its women’s 540 kilogram title and won its first-ever men’s 640 kg title at the 2026 World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Taipei yesterday. In the women’s event, Taiwan’s eight-person squad reached the final following a round-robin preliminary round and semifinals featuring teams from Ukraine, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Basque Country and South Korea. In the finals, they swept the Basque team 2-0, giving the team composed mainly of National Taiwan Normal University students and graduates its second championship in a row, and its fourth in five years. Team captain
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