SEOUL, The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) on Wednesday rolled out a set of campaign pledges aimed at supporting small businesses, ahead of the April elections.

The DP plans to significantly increase the amount of government subsidies business owners can receive when closing down businesses, while introducing a long-term loan program that can be repaid for a maximum of 20 years, Rep. Lee Gae-ho, the chief of the party’s policy committee, said in a press conference at the National Assembly.

To boost spending, the DP will seek to increase the budget earmarked for government cash vouchers that can be only used at local businesses and expand tax benefits for credit card purchases, which used to be limited to traditional markets.

Lee also vowed to substantially increase state budgets allocated to support loan interests and other policies for small businesses owners.

With the announcement, party leader Lee Jae-myung met with members of the Korea Federation of Micro Enterprises and listened to difficultie
s and policy suggestions from business owners.

Source: Yonhap News Agency