Budget cuts being proposed by the opposition would destabilize the country, slow down development and create weaknesses that enemies could exploit, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said during a news conference yesterday, as cross-party negotiations broke down once again ahead of a looming deadline.
The budget proposed in August last year by the Executive Yuan forecast annual revenue of NT$3.15 trillion (US$95.66 billion) and expenses of NT$3.13 trillion, for a surplus of NT$20.9 billion.
Photo: CNA
However, the plan has languished since being sent to the legislature, prompting lawmakers to extend the current session to Tuesday next week.
Lawmakers from the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) have proposed significant reductions and freezes, with more than 3,000 proposals being put forward.
Yesterday’s negotiations broke down, with little progress after only an hour and a half.
At a separate news conference, Cho said there are five main areas where the proposed cuts would impact the nation: harming national competitiveness, undermining defense capabilities, slowing technological advancement, reducing public services and diminishing the government’s ability to communicate to the public.
Economic development projects, such as providing support for small businesses, subsidizing new long-term care options for the elderly and promoting youth employment opportunities, would no longer be possible, he said.
The proposals would directly affect progress in carbon neutrality goals, academic research, human rights protections and other programs, he added.
Asked whether the Executive Yuan would propose a review of the budget, Cho said that while it is the Executive Yuan’s right to do so, it would depend on the Legislative Yuan’s actions.
To propose a review, the Executive Yuan would need approval from President William Lai (賴清德), who has his own perspective on how to act in the nation’s best interest, Cho said.
The premier called on lawmakers to exercise their budget oversight power cautiously, rather than engage in retaliatory cuts driven by personal grievances.
Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said that in addition to affecting military operations and projects, the cuts would undermine Taiwan’s ability to signal to the US its resolve to defend itself.
This year’s defense budget is NT$476 billion, but opposition parties have proposed up to NT$7.3 billion in cuts and freezing NT$192.3 billion, accounting for 44 percent of the budget.
In particular, the KMT is proposing a NT$1.8 billion reduction for the indigenous submarine project, leaving only NT$200 million for this year.
The ministry would like to see the submarine project fully funded, Koo said, adding that he “made a promise” that the ministry would only use the budget after the Hai Kun (海鯤), or Narwhal, passes the sea acceptance test which is expected to be held in April, so the ministry does not want the budget to be frozen or slashed.
Responding to rising tensions in the Taiwan Strait would be difficult with such a large part of the budget frozen, Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) said.
The proposal freezes 70 percent of the ministry’s operational budget, which goes to maintaining equipment, procuring necessities such as ammunition and fuel, and training new personnel, Po said.
Cutting the NT$76.25 million budget for drone research would undermine Taiwan’s ability to defend itself from the daily threat of Chinese drones, especially in the outlying islands, Po added.
National Science and Technology Council Minister Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文) said the science parks under the council’s management would be thrown into an unprecedented crisis should lawmakers freeze its budget.
Proposals by the opposition to suspend the bulk of the council’s budget would impact the parks’ operations as soon as April, he said, adding that artificial intelligence and quantum technology research programs would be damaged.
The council is troubled by lawmakers’ inexplicable decision to slash budget items, which has already spurred nervousness in the technology sector, Wu said.
Large swathes of traditional manufacturing depends on supply chains in the nation’s science parks, and interrupting the industrial process would have unthinkable consequences for Taiwanese and the world, he said.
Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) cautioned that cross-strait exchanges could come to a complete halt, as Taiwan’s representative offices in Hong Kong and Macau might have to shut down, and applications from Chinese who want to travel to Taiwan would not be processed.
There are 365,000 families with Chinese spouses, more than 50,000 Hong Kong residents and 10,000 students from Hong Kong, Macau and China staying in Taiwan, while about 70,000 Taiwanese are staying in Hong Kong, Chiu said, warning that the rights of these people could be severely affected.
In response, the KMT said it has every right to monitor the government budget and safeguard taxpayers’ money, adding that the DPP should try to convince the public by providing good reasons to support its spending plans.
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