The ruling Saenuri Party on Tuesday urged the government to compile a “sizable” amount of supplementary budget, highlighting that extra spending is needed to bolster the nation’s faltering economy marred by rising unemployment.

In a meeting with high-profile officials from the Ministry of Strategy and Finance and the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the Saenuri lawmakers belonging to a special in-house committee on employment recommended that the government increase the amount of extra budget to help create jobs and boost corporate restructuring.

“With even the central bank employing aggressive monetary policy to address the faltering economy and worsening unemployment, it is time to take more proactive fiscal policy,” said Rep. Choo Kyung-ho, the chairman of the special committee. The first-term lawmaker had served as a vice finance minister.

The Bank of Korea cut its benchmark interest rate to a historic low of 1.25 percent on June 9. The government officials did not respond to the request immediately, but reportedly said that they would consider the suggestion. Choo said that the government officials saw the need to allocate the budget and have begun analyzing the economic impact of the proposal.

Regarding the size of the budget, which is expected to be from 10 trillion won ($8.6 billion) to 15 trillion won, Choo said that those who attended the meeting did not discuss specific numbers. The government is scheduled to announce the budget plan as early as this week. 

By Yeo Jun-suk (jasonyeo@heraldcorp.com)