By Lee Tae-hoon
Staff Reporter

The National Assembly will not be able to meet the Wednesday deadline for deliberations of next year's government spending plan scaled at 291.8 trillion won ($250.8 billion).

Should it fail to deal with the budget before Jan. 1, when the fiscal year starts, state spending will be set the same as this year.

This would place new welfare projects and the four-river project in great difficulty, ruling party officials said Tuesday.

The failure is the seventh consecutive one for the legislature to complete annual budget deliberations on time.

The Constitution states the Assembly must pass the spending bill by Dec. 2 to allow 30 days of preparation for its execution.

"The Assembly is in a state of turmoil as only six standing committees have completed budget deliberations," Ahn Sang-soo, floor leader of the governing Grand National Party (GNP), said.

The bill requires a review by 16 parliamentary standing committees before it is voted at a plenary session.

Even if all standing committees and the ad hoc Committee for Budget and Accounts work night and day, it will be practically impossible for them to complete deliberations before the Assembly closes its regular session next Wednesday, Ahn said.

As a result, it will be inevitable for the Assembly to convene an extraordinary session to deal with the spending plan.

"Opposition parties are sabotaging deliberations over the Sejong City and four-river restoration projects," Ahn said.

Rep. Kim Jung-hoon of the GNP also criticized opposition parties for delaying the deliberations, saying, "The public will be the victims of the delay."

However, the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) appeared to be more concerned with deterring the river project and blocking the ruling camp's move to scrap the previous administration's plan to relocate government offices out of Seoul.

"The DP also wants to promptly carry out deliberations. But we are obliged to provide checks and balances to the governing party," DP floor leader Lee Kang-rae said.

He said the Assembly should review proposed spending for education and welfare projects again.

Rep. Park Sang-cheon of the DP also hinted at the possibility of a budget review.

"The DP will fight with concrete and verifiable evidence against the four-river project," Park said.

The budget deliberation of the Assembly Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs Committee broke up as the two major parties failed to narrow their differences over whether to hold a closed or open meeting.

leeth@koreatimes.co.kr