(2nd LD) Lee calls for all-out efforts to boost housing supply

(ATTN: UPDATES with Cabinet meeting results in last 4 paras)

SEOUL, Oct. 20 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday stressed the need to cut the time required for administrative procedures in building homes, calling for all-out efforts to boost housing supply.

The president made the call during a Cabinet meeting as runaway housing prices persist despite the government's efforts to cool the market.

"Stable housing is the foundation for practical improvements in people's lives," Lee said, citing a decline in housing construction permits and the supply of new land for real estate development over the past three years as reasons for disruptions in housing supply.

"In order to resolve the current problems in the real estate market, created by various factors that have accumulated over the years, consistent market management policies and large-scale housing supply measures should be implemented promptly," he added.

Lee instructed officials to make all-out efforts to boost housing supply by cutting the time needed to prepare land for development and granting administrative permits for house construction as quickly as possible, "without being constrained by customary practices and procedures."

"I ask you to make all-out efforts with the determination that the success of administrative management depends on stabilizing the housing (market)," he noted.

Additionally, the president called for a comprehensive overhaul of the country's public safety functions, including policing, firefighting and disaster prevention, saying thorough protection measures are needed not only for the public but also for those working in such fields.

"Administrative capacities should be focused on building a nation that safeguards the lives of its people and protects their everyday lives," the president said, instructing officials to conduct thorough safety checks of facilities that draw crowds, bridges and other key public structures.

The president also highlighted that the Serious Crime Investigation Agency (SCIA) should focus on ensuring impartiality in its investigation, particularly into crimes that harm people's lives, such as corruption and offenses involving stocks and financial matters.

He directed the instruction at Kim Ji-yong, the inaugural SCIA chief who attended the Cabinet meeting for the first time, urging him to carry out his duties promptly and sternly to allay public worries over prosecution reform and help maintain a fair social order.

The SCIA was launched earlier this month to investigate serious crimes as part of the Lee administration's prosecution reform, which removed investigative authority from the prosecution service, leaving it responsible only for indictments and their maintenance.

The Cabinet meeting on Tuesday approved a number of bills for the promulgation of new laws and presidential decrees, including a revised Occupational Safety and Health Act.

The revision of the occupational safety law allows fines of up to 5 percent of a company's operating profits if the company reports the death of three or more employees within a year due to industrial accidents. The fines collected will be used to fund measures aimed at preventing industrial accidents.

The Cabinet also approved the promulgation of a revised Animal Protection Act, which allows authorities to ban people convicted of animal abuse from raising animals when there is a risk of re-offense.

The revisions will go into effect six months after they are formally promulgated.

pbr@yna.co.kr
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