Priorities for Helping Poor, Local Regions

Rep. Kim S.J. to lead Strategy Finance Comm. in support of government fiscal policies for balanced development

The recovery of our economy that began last year despite the global economic crisis is continuing. A large government stimulus package to boost the economy as a means to break out of the quagmire has been leading the comeback. Major industries and businesses fought the downturn to help turn the economy around with the help of government stimulus.
The OECD pointed to Korea as one of the countries showing a strong economic recovery among OECD member countries. This has all been possible due to the collective capacity of our people to put the economy back on track.
But it may be too early to say that Korea’s economy is on the way to recovery for sure, as the instability in international finance continues unfazed with the U.S. announcing its financial regulation reform, the return to tight government spending by the U.S. and China and the lingering financial crisis in southern European countries including Greece.
With the situation as it is, I feel a great responsibility as chairman of the Strategy Finance Committee, which oversees the national treasury and economic policies from the legislative side. As the saying goes, the illness can be treated easily in the early stages, but it is hard to diagnose. On the other hand, when an illness has progressed for a long time, it is easy to diagnose, but difficult to treat.
PIIGS countries say the Korean economy needs to continuously reform its structure in order to be able to withstand various outside shocks. We have to prepare for various exigencies by strengthening our financial health both in the mid and long-term perspectives, taking the European financial crisis as a good example.
Although I am not a former government financial official, in the past two years, I was head of the Yeouido Research Institute, a think tank for the Grand National Party (GNP), as well as chairman of the party’s Policy Committee. I will make sure to act as a rational coordinator for sensitive issues and try to lead the committee to check and balance government policies and, at the same time, see that legislative proposals made by both opposition and ruling parties are reflected in government policies. I will also try to ensure that there will be no delays by the legislative branch in taking legislative actions by sticking to various legislative regulations.
Many governments and major organizations praised Korea for overcoming the economic crisis wisely, and we will try our best to strengthen the government’s financial health, grown worse by rising government debts resulting from the large infusion of funds in the wake of the financial crisis.
We will also try to expand the number of youth intern positions to create jobs in many areas including the service sector and short-term jobs through the infusion of government funds, tax breaks and reform in the industrial structure. We will also try to upgrade the service industry, reform various regulations to change the business environment and other strategies toward creating more jobs around the country.
I will also go all out to take care of those individuals and regions that have been left out from the economic stimulus measures to overcome the economic crisis. We will try to cover their needs with government policies to have local autonomous organizations share the residential taxes paid by local residents who have lived in their regions for more than five years through the passing of the “native development tax.” I have been pushing the legislation of the law since I was chairman of the Policy Committee of the ruling GNP to have the local autonomous administration to be able to stand on their own financially as well as for balanced development of the country.
I will also try to see that business firms returning to the country wrapping up their operations overseas get the same favors as those firms that relocate to local areas from the Seoul area in terms of government financial and administrative support aimed at revitalizing local economies. I plan on legislating the so called “Overseas U-turn Support’ Law, the Local Consumer Tax, and Local Income Tax, which allocates the 5 percent of the Value-added Tax to local authorities, all dedicated toward revitalizing the local economies. nw

Rep. Kim Seong-jo, Chairman, the Strategy Finance Committee, The National Assembly