Han Byungdo Meets Kim Jounghun of Progressive Party: "Bipartisan Cooperation for Livelihoods and Reform Legislation"

Byungdo Han, Acting Leader and Floor Leader of the Democratic Party, met with the new leader of the Progressive Party, Jounghoon Kim, on July 30 and stated, "We will cooperate in a bipartisan manner to promote the recovery of people's livelihoods and advance reform legislation."

He also promised to establish a platform for major policy discussions involving five parties from the Democratic and Progressive blocs (the Democratic Party, Innovation Party of Korea, Progressive Party, Basic Income Party, and Social Democratic Party). Having proposed a similar idea during a meeting with Jangshik Shin, leader of the Innovation Party of Korea, on July 28, Han reiterated this proposal to Leader Kim, drawing attention to whether this five-party council could become the starting point for further discussions on political reform, including the resumption of the Special Committee on Political Reform.

Byungdo Han, Acting Leader and Floor Leader of the Democratic Party (left), is presenting a congratulatory flower arrangement to Jounghoon Kim, Leader of the Progressive Party, who visited on the 30th to offer his inauguration greetings. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

At the National Assembly, Han met with Leader Kim, who visited to offer his inauguration greetings, and stated, "The Democratic Party and Progressive Party have been partners in addressing the fundamental challenges of our era. We need bipartisan cooperation not only to overcome the crisis affecting people's livelihoods and protect the vulnerable, but also to accomplish key legislative reforms."

He added, "I vividly remember your bold decision to unify candidacies with Ulsan Mayor Sanguk Kim during the June 3 local elections, which contributed to the broader progressive victory. That joint commitment for a greater cause laid the foundation and set an example of solidarity that both the Democratic and Progressive blocs have shown to the public."

Han went on to say, "The Democratic Party and Progressive Party have stood together as partners in dispelling darkness and leading the revolution of light. We now stand before a historic mission—to overcome today's crises, protect society's most vulnerable, and deliver sweeping social reform," adding, "I hope the Democratic Party and Progressive Party will succeed in passing people's livelihood and reform bills to bring great hope to the nation."

In response, Leader Kim emphasized, "The fruits of economic growth must be reflected in the lives of the people," and proposed establishing a '100 Trillion Won Excess Tax Revenue Committee' within the National Assembly. He said, "Although the semiconductor industry is forecast to experience its greatest boom, it is necessary to examine whether people's lives have fundamentally improved," and stressed, "Both the ruling and opposition parties need to discuss how to utilize excess tax revenue, so that we can establish guiding principles and specific measures for the recovery of people's livelihoods."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.