Premier Lin Chuan has called on all government departments to minimize their budget projection for the upcoming year. Statistics Office Controller Chen Jui-min has said the office will closely communicate with the defense ministry regarding its demand for a larger budget.
Defense minister Feng Shih-kuan’s said a few days ago that he hopes the legislature will increase the defense budget to over NT$ 400 billion (US$ 12.3 billion) in the coming year. Chen Jui-min responded to reporters’ questions Thursday at the Legislature, saying that the Statistics Office will discuss the budget with the defense ministry once the ministry has come up with a proposal.
"We don’t know what proposal [Feng] is going to come up with. [The defense ministry] is still adjusting [its budget projection]. We’ll continue to pay attention to the defense ministry’s budget planning in 2016, prioritize different projects, and carefully come up with a budget while keeping the nation’s finances in mind," Chen said.
Chen also said that he hopes all government agencies’ budget projections will not increase from last year. However, Chen said that public infrastructure and technological development are keys to Taiwan’s economic growth, and that it is understandable to see steady budget growth in those two sectors.