Extra budget bill vote continues to face delays amid bipartisan debate

We start at the National Assembly today where lawmakers across the aisle continue to LOCK HORNS over the government-proposed extra budget.

For more on the fate of this bill I have our correspondent Moon Hye-ryeon standing by live.

Hye-ryeon it's good to have you on.

So what's the latest there?

The National Assembly's plenary session to vote on the new administration's first supplementary budget bill has been delayed with disagreements between the ruling and opposition parties clouding the process.

Lawmakers were scheduled to vote on the bill on Friday afternoon at 2 PM, but the session was pushed back amid last-minute talks to finalize the bill at the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts meeting just prior to the plenary session.

The budget was initially proposed at 30-point-5 trillion Korean won — or around 22 billion U.S. dollars — and saw an expansion to just over 23 billion dollars after committee-level reviews and adjustments.

The session is expected to begin after the special budget committee meeting concludes, which could be any minute now.

The Democratic Party holds a majority in the National Assembly and can push the bill through on its own without the opposition People Power Party's backing — which is what is expected to happen after the PPP declared earlier today that it would be abstaining from voting.

So what have been the main points of contention between the ruling and main opposition parties?

Leading up to the vote, the two parties have been clashing over the bill's key provisions, particularly around how and where the additional spending should be directed.

At the heart of this new budget are "consumption vouchers" that the ruling Democratic Party said were a point of contention with the main opposition People Power Party in the lead-up to the vote.

Depending on income, Korean citizens in the capital region will receive between 150 thousand and 500 thousand won in spending vouchers that can be used like a gift certificate at small, local businesses.

The DP emphasized the urgency of passing and executing this in order to boost domestic consumption and help people's livelihoods, and said that the PPP took issue with the scope of recipients eligible for the program.

Another major point of contention was the reallocation of special activity funds for the presidential office.

The DP proposed restoring the funds, which are typically used for confidential or discretionary purposes — a move that drew sharp criticism from the PPP.

Opposition lawmakers called this move hypocritical, given that the DP had previously slashed the same budget when in opposition.

That's all for now, back to you, Sun-hee.

All right Hye-ryeon thank you for now.

And do keep us posted.