75% agree on collecting more tax for welfare policy

By Bahk Eun-ji

More than seven out of 10 citizens believe it is appropriate for the government to pay for expanded welfare by raising taxes, according to a study published Monday.

This suggests that the majority think state-offered welfare programs are insufficient and are willing to pay more taxes to expand them.

According to the study conducted by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs on 3,873 adults from last June to September, 75.8 percent said it was necessary for the government to raise taxes to expand welfare.

Kim Hyo-bin, a 36-year-old office worker in Seoul with a three-year-old daughter, is one of the people who agrees with supporting welfare expansion through paying increased taxes.

“I am completely willing to pay taxes for programs such as free school lunches or free vaccinations for children, although some criticize it as a kind of populist agenda,” Kim said.

He said those kinds of plans are basic rights that should be enjoyed by all children.

“I mean, where else should our tax money be spent, then? I'm tired of my taxes being wasted on construction projects,” Kim added.

Another office worker, Kim Ji-in, 39, living alone in Seoul, said the government could collect more taxes to provide more welfare programs, but the spending must be done transparently.

“I have not benefited much from welfare policies so far as a single woman, but I'm willing to pay more taxes if my money goes to those people in need, such as the disabled or children in lower-income families,” she said.

Unlike Kim, 22.6 percent of respondents in the survey said collecting more taxes to expand welfare is improper.

Among those who oppose the idea of increasing taxes, 35.6 percent said they think the money may not be properly spent on welfare but be “wasted,” while 21.9 percent said they and their families are unlikely to benefit even if programs were expanded. Twenty-one percent said more welfare would make people lazy, and 19.8 percent said high tax rates may hinder economic growth.

Regarding what the government should spend more money on, 60.6 percent said taxes should be used to create jobs, and 57.7 percent preferred taxes being used to provide more money for college scholarships, when multiple answers were allowed.

Another 51.6 percent cited the need to help the elderly secure a good quality of life; 51.2 percent, more childcare services; 50.2 percent, offering financial aid to people in the low-income bracket; 44.9 percent, providing various services for disabled people; 42.3 percent, more benefits in medical services; and 38.7 percent, providing affordable housing.