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Han Byung-do, the floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, said regarding the formation of the legislative committees for the latter half of the 22nd National Assembly, "I will not tolerate the past practice of dragging this out for 48 or 54 days." With the People Power Party having completed the election of its floor leader, the party plans to accelerate negotiations between the ruling and opposition parties to organize the legislature.
At a Democratic Party general meeting held at the National Assembly on the 11th, Han said of the latter-half committee formation, "It has become customary for the ruling and opposition parties to stall for time when disputes arise during negotiations, but this time we will not do that."
He stressed, "The situation in the Middle East and livelihood issues are very urgent, and there is a mountain of work to be done, including the election commission matter," adding, "We will negotiate sufficiently with the opposition, but do so as quickly as possible while keeping the substance full."
He continued, "We will boldly break with bad practices and pursue the committee formation negotiations as much as possible with next week as our target," adding, "We will begin the matter of committee distribution right away, listening to lawmakers' opinions and consulting with them to wrap things up calmly."
The Democratic Party intends to hasten the committee formation negotiations, given the urgency of a parliamentary investigation into the ballot shortage incident and the passage of livelihood legislation.
Han Jeong-ae, chair of the Democratic Party's Policy Committee, also urged the passage of livelihood bills pending in the National Assembly at a policy coordination meeting held ahead of the general meeting that day.
She said, "Right now, dozens of livelihood bills are awaiting passage in the National Assembly plenary session," and added, "We must swiftly pass the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act to prevent industrial accidents and strengthen labor safety, as well as the Urban Renewal Act and the Special Act on Public Housing to promote housing supply."
She continued, "We will also accelerate the enactment of the Mega Special Zone Special Act that we promised in the local elections," adding, "We will spare no effort in legislation and budget to ensure that bold support—including regulatory exceptions, tax assistance, and swift permits and approvals—works on the ground."
