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4mo ago

Lee Seeks Cross-Party Backing for Fuel Relief Budget, Constitutional Revision

Securing People Power Party support is now the key test in the Assembly.

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President Lee Jae Myung (C) speaks with People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok (R) during a meeting with the leaders of the ruling and the main opposition parties to discuss measures to mitigate the economic fallout from the war in the Middle East at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on April 7, 2026. (Yonhap)
President Lee Jae Myung attends a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on April 6, 2026. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
President Lee Jae Myung (C) speaks during a meeting with leaders of the ruling and the main opposition parties to discuss measures to mitigate the economic fallout from the war in the Middle East at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on April 7, 2026. (Yonhap)

Overview

  • Lee, who convened party leaders Tuesday at Cheong Wa Dae, asked for bipartisan cooperation to blunt Middle East war-driven fuel costs and inflation and to set up a cross-party consultative body.
  • The government detailed a 26.2 trillion won supplementary budget that includes a 4.8 trillion won oil-price relief fund and cash payments of 100,000 to 600,000 won for lower-income households.
  • About 35.8 million people in the bottom 70 percent of earners would qualify, with amounts adjusted by income level, region, and whether recipients live in areas with shrinking populations.
  • Lee said the plan uses existing tax revenue and rejected new debt or levies, calling the payouts a relief measure rather than populism.
  • After Cabinet approval Monday, Lee pushed a charter change that tightens martial-law rules and adds references to past pro-democracy uprisings, while PPP floor leader Song Eon-seok voiced caution and pressed for a pledge not to seek dismissal of criminal charges.