Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) on Wednesday said that local governments would receive “red envelopes” to pad their budgets next year due to a surplus in national tax revenue. Taiwan's total tax revenue has reached NT$357.2 billion (US$11 billion) as of October, already surpassing its budget needs for 2023. Chen says he has requested that the Finance Ministry processes the payments as soon as possible and hopes to complete the relevant work by early next year.
Chen says he hopes to allocate these funds to benefit local people, as well as support local construction projects. Chen adds that the government is reviewing a plan to subsidize housing for college students living on campus, and says the plan will be explained to the public once it is completed.
Also on Wednesday, Premier Chen delivered a speech at a road safety forum. He says that the government plans to improve Taiwan’s road safety through legislation, amendments, action plans, budgeting, and implementation.