Cabinet mulls additional COVID-19 relief measures

2021/06/01

No effort will be spared by the government in expediting additional relief measures to assist the people of Taiwan weather the impact of COVID-19, according to Premier Su Tseng-chang May 27.
 
Amendments to the Special Act for Prevention, Relief and Revitalization Measures for Severe Pneumonia with Novel Pathogens are under review by the Legislature after greenlighted by the Cabinet May 13, Su said.
 
By raising the special budget from NT$420 billion (US$15.13 billion) to NT$630 billion, as well as extending the duration of the legislation for another year to June 30, 2022, Su said the bill underscores the government’s commitment to offering a helping hand to those hardest hit by the pandemic.
 
Su made the remarks after a briefing by the National Development Council in response to the recent spike in domestic coronavirus cases. The total number stands at 6,974 as of May 30, with the raising of the warning level by the Central Epidemic Command Center to level three resulting in tightened crowd controls and temporary shutdowns of schools and 22 types of businesses.
 
According to Su, all relevant agencies are formulating respective response measures based on the principle of fast-tracking aid for individuals, strengthening relief for industries and increasing the number of available bank loans.
 
Under the additional measures proposed by the NDC, banks with state ownership will allow interest payments in instalments and deferred repayment of loan principals. At the same time, the Ministry of Finance is working on plans to reduce taxes on businesses.
 
Those heavily impacted by the pandemic, including medium- and low-income earners, as well as taxi drivers, tour bus drivers and tour guides, are set to receive one-time cash subsidies of between N$10,00 and NT$30,000.
 
NDC statistics show that since the act took effect Feb. 25, 2020, more than 5.24 million individuals have received NT$139.3 billion in cash subsidies. In addition, over 8 million firms, proprietors and small business operators have received preferential loans and other forms of financial assistance. 


Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/index.php)