Han Byung-do, acting leader and floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, said Thursday the party would stabilize the housing market through a comprehensive package covering supply, taxation and finance, and pledged to move swiftly on related legislation.
Speaking at a policy coordination meeting at the National Assembly, Han said the party would "pool the capabilities of the Land Committee, the Political Affairs Committee, the Finance Committee and other relevant standing committees to comprehensively coordinate supply, finance, taxation and legislative tasks, ensuring that government measures are carried out on the ground without a hitch."
Han said the government would announce its housing supply measures Thursday, adding that the Democratic Party would convene a general assembly of lawmakers immediately afterward to share the government's plan and gather a wide range of members' views.
Han cited several bills still awaiting passage — including legislation on urban and residential environment improvement, housing, public housing, urban redevelopment promotion and the mixed-use redevelopment of aging public buildings — and said measures directly tied to faster housing supply "have still not been processed."
He then turned to the People Power Party, demanding to know "exactly why, while emphasizing people's livelihoods and housing supply, you have been delaying the passage of the bills needed to back them up for nearly a year." He urged the PPP to debate contentious issues separately while moving ahead on livelihood matters without delay.
Han criticized Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon's housing supply record but said he was "not trying to relitigate the past," adding that residential stability "is not a subject for wasteful political squabbling but a livelihood task that the government, the National Assembly and local governments must all put their heads together to design and execute with precision."
He called on Mayor Oh and the People Power Party to "join in big-picture cooperation for the residential stability of the people," and said the party would "create a housing market where the public can feel at ease through swift supply and support for genuine homebuyers."
Han Jeong-ae, chair of the party's policy committee, said members had "strongly agreed above all that sufficient supply that people can actually feel must be delivered with speed." She said broadening the supply base required drawing on both public and private capacity and making active use of unused private sites for housing.
Han also stressed measures for the jeonse and monthly rent markets and for genuine homebuyers such as young people and newlyweds. She said the party must "secure supply capacity through every available means, including non-apartment housing, and respond flexibly," while taking care that young people, newlyweds and real-demand buyers are not left struggling amid housing market instability.
She added that the effectiveness of financial policy must be strengthened to support those with heavy housing costs and to underpin stable housing for genuine buyers. The party would "leave no gaps in checking whether the pace and effectiveness of expanded supply are sufficient and whether measures for the jeonse and monthly rent markets, young people and real-demand buyers are properly in place," she said.
Han left open the possibility of further supplementary steps after the government's announcement, saying the party would "continue to fill in any shortcomings through future National Assembly deliberations" and would "devote all efforts to housing stability through solid legislative backing, including the swift passage of supply bills."
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