The deregulation bills must see the light

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) handed in a petition to the National Assembly last week, relaying hopes from the business community to remove and innovate outdated regulations. It is a plea for a fast review and passage of deregulatory bills pending in the legislature. They include 97 bills on five sectors, including new industries, labor, logistics services to legalize unmanned deliveries through drones and other vehicles, autonomous motor vehicles to expand the scope of self-driving vehicles, and employment of foreign workers to ease regulations on them.

The Korea Employers Federation (KEF) also plans to submit a petition on regulatory reform. According to the KEF, out of 255 employment- and labor-related bills passed under the 21st National Assembly, only 23 — or just 9 percent — are aimed at supporting business activities. In an earlier KCCI report that examined the performance of the 21st Assembly whose four-year term started in 2020, the legislature passed as many as 284 bills that are unfavorable to management just three months after it opened.

President Yoon Suk Yeol in July pledged to remove regulations stifling corporate activities. The Prime Minister’s Office in August pointed to the so-called “killer” regulations that must be eliminated first after consulting with the business community and other government offices. Deputy Prime Minister for Economy Choo Kyung-ho also announced measures last week to ease regulations in the business field.

But there are limits to government ordinances in doing away with regulations. For instance, if large supermarket chain stores are to be allowed to operate during weekends and holidays, the Retail Industry Advance Act should be revised. But the revised bill has been gathering dust in the legislature for three years. The stall not just hinders the retail industry, but causes inconvenience for consumers. The business sector is asking lawmakers to first pass at least the bills still pending in the National Assembly.

Bureaucratic regulations dampen our economic vitality. As in the case with the so-called Tada van-hailing service, out-of-date regulations can kill any new industries that can help fuel new growth of the economy. The regulations can be more dangerous to companies when economic conditions are bad like these days. Companies cannot easily invest under the high-interest environment amid soaring household and corporate debts. Regulations will only worsen investment sentiment.

Korea’s growth could be outpaced by Japan this year for the first time in 25 years. The economy stands at a crossroads between slipping into a fixated low-growth path or overcoming our challenges. Rival parties must demonstrate bipartisanship to save the economy through regulatory reform. It is the least they can do to ensure that their entire term is not wasted on political wrangling.