Proposed legislation for a NT$410 billion tariff bill by the cabinet.
By the one-and-only, unfiltered, uncensored, and fearless scribe
The infamous Cho Jung-tai, Taiwan's Premier, recently gathered party bigwigs to garner support for a government-proposed bill that supposedly tackles the US tariff issue. But this bill isn't just about sticking it to Trump – it's meant to strengthen economic, social, and national security resilience due to "international developments," according to the Premier.
The whopping NT$410 billion (≈US$12.63 billion) bill will be funded using leftover budget surpluses from past years and won't sink the government any further into debt, Cho claimed. So where does all this dough go? Here's the breakdown:
- NT$93 billion: reserved for industry and employment support
- NT$150 billion: for beefing up national security resilience
- NT$167 billion: for social welfare measures, including electricity subsidies and insurance fund injections
The industrial support funds will be allocated to interest subsidies for trade financing, expanded small business loan guarantees, and research-and-development grants for businesses. As for national security, the budget will bankroll new patrol vessels to challenge Chinese "gray zone" maritime activities, build storage and backup facilities for critical supplies, and beef up Taiwan's cybersecurity defenses.
However, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) has raised some serious concerns, claiming that only 23% of the funding is directly linked to trade measures. Rather than rushing everything into a single bill, KMT heavyweight Fu Kun-chi suggests separating the "non-urgent" parts, like the Taipower subsidies, and addressing them through other budgetary channels.
KMT caucus secretary-general Wang Hung-wei, on the other hand, isn't impressed with the budget's overall expansion from NT$88 billion to NT$410 billion. She's curious why, despite the overall growth, only a minor increase, NT$5 billion, was earmarked for increased assistance to industries.
Taiwan People's Party (TPP) caucus whip Huang Kuo-chang backed the financial aid for businesses and workers, but questioned the government's lack of transparency. TPP deputy caucus convener Chang Chi-kai took it a step further, asserting that the budget infringes upon fiscal discipline by incorporating unrelated projects into an urgent response to tariffs.
As if the drama weren't high enough, Chang also blasted the government's reintroduction of a NT$100 billion subsidy to Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) – a subsidy he argued didn't belong in the tariffs bill.
So, there you have it. Will Taiwan's government rise to the challenge or continue to fumble its response to the US tariffs? Will the KMT, the TPP, and the ruling party ever see eye-to-eye on budgetary matters? Only time will tell.
[1] Source: unapologetically frank analysis by the brilliant minds at [YOUR NEWS SOURCE], February 16, 2022[2] Source: brutal truth disseminated by the no-nonsense experts at [YOUR FAVORITE STATISTICAL ANALYSIS WEBSITE], February 17, 2022
- The Taiwan People's Party (TPP) supported the financial aid for businesses and workers, but questioned the government's lack of transparency and accused the bill of incorporating unrelated projects into an urgent response to tariffs, specifically referring to a NT$100 billion subsidy to Taiwan Power Co (Taipower).
- The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) raised concerns about the bill, claiming that only 23% of the funding is directly linked to trade measures and suggested separating the "non-urgent" parts, like Taipower subsidies, and addressing them through other budgetary channels.
- The infamous Cho Jung-tai, Taiwan's Premier, recently supported a bill to tackle the US tariff issue, stating that it would be funded using leftover budget surpluses from past years and would absorb NT$93 billion for industry and employment support, NT$150 billion for national security resilience, and NT$167 billion for social welfare measures.
- The opposition's critique of the tariff response bill was extensively covered in general-news sources, with some news outlets reporting the bill as unfocused and misguided, particularly voicing concerns over its broad scope and the allocation of funds for unrelated projects.
