Blue House Addresses Controversy Over Future Response Fund

The Blue House stated on August 26 that the Future Response Fund, which has been criticized by opposition parties as a so-called "slush fund," is intended for responsible fiscal management and targeted investments.

A Blue House official spoke to reporters in the press briefing room, saying, "The idea is that it is not responsible fiscal management for the government to spend more when tax revenues are high and less when they are low."

The official added, "It seems likely that there will be unexpected large tax revenues again next year," and explained that the government aims to shift the role of fiscal policy and national debt direction through the Future Response Fund, moving away from traditional fiscal management practices.

He emphasized the need to separately secure funding for higher education and lifelong education in conjunction with the restructuring of grants, stating, "Given the current fiscal structure, it is difficult, so we plan to include an education talent account to prepare that funding."

Regarding differing opinions on how to utilize excess tax revenue, he noted, "While it is not entirely wrong to suggest that we could use increased tax revenue to repay the national debt, which is currently being covered by issuing 110 trillion won in government bonds, we cannot be certain that such high tax revenues will continue in the coming years."