By Lee Haye-ah
SEOUL, Aug. 24 (Yonhap) — President Yoon Suk Yeol asserted Thursday that regulatory barriers should be lifted expeditiously to enhance the public’s well-being and invigorate investment and business.
Yoon made the statement as he presided over a government-business summit on regulations impacting industrial complexes, the environment and hiring.
“Regulations are created with the intent to do good, but they can also distort markets or generate monopolies and oligopolies,” he said during the fourth regulatory innovation strategy meeting held at G Valley Industrial Museum in western Seoul.
“Ultimately, these regulations often obstruct fair competition,” he continued. “The government has so far finished roughly 1,400 regulatory reforms and put a lot of effort into regulatory innovation. But those in the field are asking for it to be more daring and faster.”
Yoon emphasized the importance of swiftness in removing regulations and urged public officials to prioritize the elimination of “killer regulations,” a term he used last month to refer to critical regulations that discourage investments by businesses.
Thursday’s discussions focused on ways to reform regulations governing the use of space at industrial complexes, the production of chemical substances and the hiring of foreign workers.
The government said it will expand the quota for E-7-4 visas issued to skilled foreign workers from 2,000 last year to 35,000 this year.
President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a regulatory innovation meeting at G Valley Industrial Museum in western Seoul on Aug. 24, 2023. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
hague@yna.co.kr
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