Taiwan’s Legislature on Tuesday passed the initial review of a relief bill for NT$260 billion (US$9.4 billion). The bill will allocate stimulus subsidies for corporate relief and families with children impacted by the recent COVID-19 outbreak. The government will fund the bill by taking on more debt.
In the three-day review of the bill, the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) suggested relaxing the threshold for subsidies for labor workers and for the drop in business earnings. The DPP also requested the extension of rent reduction for state-run businesses until June next year.
The opposition Kuomintang (KMT) said the government must distribute the vaccines fairly. It also said the health ministry should offer incentives for vaccination and propose compensation measures in the event of serious side effects. The KMT also suggested that the government make transparent the number of vaccines that have arrived and the number of vaccinations completed.
The relief bill will be up for passage in the Legislature on Friday.