Government and Ruling Party: "Considering KRW 2 Trillion in Support for Essential Firefighting Investments... Reviewing Ways to Ease Local Burdens"

"Budget for expanding firefighting equipment and training facilities to be included"

The central government has decided to consider providing around KRW 2 trillion in financial support for urgent, essential investments in firefighting.

The Democratic Party of Korea, the government and the Blue House held a high-level government-party consultative meeting at the Prime Minister's official residence in Samcheong-dong, Seoul, on Nov. 8, and discussed measures to ease local governments' financial burden for firefighting, Park Seongjun, the party's chief spokesperson, said at a briefing at the National Assembly. Currently, only around 10% of the firefighting budget comes from the national government. Although firefighters became national civil servants in 2020, local governments still bear a substantial portion of the firefighting budget.

Kim Minseok, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, speaks at a high-level party-government consultative meeting held at the Prime Minister's Seoul Residence in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the 8th. Yonhap News Agency

The government and the party also agreed to include the necessary budget for expanding firefighting equipment, training facilities and a medical system specializing in firefighting in deliberations on next year's budget proposal. "We will secure funding for firefighting through financial support of KRW 2 trillion, plus alpha and even beta," Park said.

Taking local governments' financial difficulties into account, the government and the party also discussed ways to increase the funds available to local governments next year by using this year's excess tax revenue and other sources. "We agreed to determine the specific amount of support through close consultations between the government and the party during the National Assembly's review of the budget proposal," Park said. "The government and the party recognize the need for more fundamental measures to expand local government finances, such as the gradual transfer of national taxes to local taxes and the redistribution of administrative responsibilities. They have agreed to reactivate the pan-governmental fiscal decentralization task force and continue discussions swiftly."

Earlier, Minister of the Interior and Safety Yun Hojung said, regarding the shortage of firefighting funds caused by a decline in the firefighting safety grant tax, "I hope the urgent shortfall in firefighting funds will be covered by funds provided through the local government account of the Future Response Fund."

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