Premier Lin Chuan says the budget for social welfare has been raised to provide for long-term healthcare.
Lin was speaking Friday, a day after the Cabinet passed the fiscal budget for next year. He rejected accusations that the increase was intended to benefit certain social groups.
“The increase in social welfare is mainly because of the issues of long-term care and the plan to build a long-term care industry," said Lin.
"The long-term care bill has yet to be revised and the funds for it do not have a legal basis. That’s why the government has allocated more than NT$10 billion [under social welfare]. This is how it happened. [We] did not give preference to any groups because long-term care is a problem that society as a whole has to face.”
In addition to social welfare, the government is also raising spending on public infrastructure, science and technology, and education.
Also on Monday, the premier inspected a public housing project in Taipei. He said that unlike the previous policy that sold units to the public, the government has decided to rent out units to people in lower income brackets so that supply will always be available in the future.