Government official: Annual budget for drone regulations could crowd out social welfare spending

(CNA Taipei, June 30) Opposition caucuses in the Legislative Yuan are expected to propose drone regulations that would revert procurement and development expenditures to the annual budget. A government official stated that the Executive Yuan's version of the drone special regulations balances military construction needs with industrial development. The opposition's version, which uses the annual budget allocation method, would significantly increase the financial burden and could crowd out important expenditures such as social welfare. The official hopes the Legislative Yuan will expedite the review of the Executive Yuan's special regulations.

The Executive Yuan passed the draft special regulations for the procurement of domestically produced unmanned vehicles on June 18 and sent it to the Legislative Yuan for review. The draft allocates a special budget with a spending cap of NT$210 billion, in accordance with Article 83, Paragraph 1 of the Budget Act. The period is scheduled from August 1 of this year to December 31, 120 (2031), to procure domestically produced unmanned vehicles such as coastal surveillance drones, coastal attack drones, and small suicide unmanned boats year by year. However, the Legislative Yuan recently postponed the review of the Executive Yuan's draft special regulations for the procurement of domestically produced unmanned vehicles.

An Executive Yuan official pointed out that the draft special regulations for the procurement of domestically produced unmanned vehicles are intended to supplement the NT$1.25 trillion that was cut from unmanned vehicle defense and combat needs. These are urgent items in the Ministry of National Defense's joint combat capability planning. The official hopes that the special budget, with its characteristics of "concentrated resources and stable scale," can rapidly build the military's unmanned combat capabilities. Simultaneously, through a strategy of large-scale, long-term orders, it can promote domestic manufacturers' investment and innovation, thereby strengthening the defense industry's self-reliance.

The official said that the government plans to provide the industry with stable development expectations through large-scale procurement and long-term orders, driving domestic manufacturers to invest in research and development, expand production capacity, and innovate technology, further strengthening domestic defense capabilities. All related items have completed an inventory of domestic production capacity, and a phased iterative procurement strategy is planned, balancing military construction needs with industrial development.

Regarding the opposition's version, which uses the annual budget allocation method, the official said that this would not only significantly increase the financial burden of each year but also potentially crowd out other important public expenditures such as social welfare and education.

The official also mentioned that the review of the total annual budget in recent years has been worrying. July is approaching, and the total central government budget for this fiscal year has not yet been completed. The industry has already expressed doubts about the stability of government procurement. If military drone construction relies entirely on the annual budget, not only could the progress of military construction be affected, but it would also make it difficult for domestic industries to grasp long-term orders and investment plans, increasing uncertainty and anxiety for businesses, thereby affecting production capacity layout and technological investment.

The official stated that only through special regulations and a special budget can stable and predictable demand be provided, allowing military construction and the domestic defense industry to advance simultaneously. According to constitutional responsibilities, budget allocation falls under the purview of the Executive Yuan. The Legislative Yuan should respect constitutional boundaries and expedite the review of the total budget and the special regulations for unmanned vehicle procurement proposed by the Executive Yuan, so that the military's construction work and the defense industry's development can proceed stably and on schedule. (Editor: Hsieh Chia-chen) 1150630

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