Taipei: Lawmakers from the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) announced plans on Tuesday to demand reductions in the government’s 2025 budget proposal during upcoming cross-party negotiations scheduled for Wednesday. The budget, approved by the Cabinet last August, allocates government spending for the fiscal year 2025 at NT$3.1325 trillion (US$94.85 billion) with anticipated revenues of NT$3.1534 trillion, resulting in a projected surplus of NT$20.9 billion.

According to Focus Taiwan, the budget designates social welfare as the largest expenditure, followed by education, technology, and culture. Defense spending is set at NT$647 billion, slightly reduced from 2024, comprising 2.45 percent of the projected GDP for 2025. Despite being submitted to the Legislative Yuan, the budget has stalled, leading to an extension of the legislative session to January 21.

The KMT plans to target the budget allocations of various government ministries, particularly media budgets, which they argue serve political purposes. Lin Szu-ming, KMT’s secretary-general, emphasized the party’s stance on rigorous budgetary oversight, stating their intent to cut unnecessary expenditures. KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi indicated he would advocate for freezing NT$1.8 billion in funds for the Narwhal submarine prototype until further testing is completed.

The TPP, holding eight seats in the 113-seat Legislature, compared to KMT’s 54 and the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) 51, announced they have proposed NT$206.1 billion in budget cuts and NT$97.4 billion in spending freezes. In response to these proposed cuts, a Cabinet official, who requested anonymity, called for a rational review of the budget plan by the Legislature, emphasizing the necessity of cross-party cooperation for national development.

Premier Cho Jung-tai has instructed ministries to justify their budgetary needs while expressing openness to reasonable legislative oversight of the budget’s implementation.