The main opposition People Power Party(PPP) has criticized the Lee Jae Myung administration's 2026 budget plan of 728 trillion won, or around 524 billion U.S. dollars, saying it will pile up debt through cash handouts and populist policies.

In a statement on Saturday, PPP chief spokesperson Park Sung-hoon said President Lee's populist fiscal spending is "driving the economy over the edge."

Park pointed out that the Lee government's mid-term financial plan is projected to generate annual deficits in the four-percent range of the gross domestic product(GDP) for the next four years, adding up to more than 109 trillion won in new debt each year.

He added that such plan is not an investment for future growth, but a "fiscal addiction" that would leave the next generation with explosive debt and push the nation toward bankruptcy.

The spokesperson urged the administration and the ruling Democratic Party(DP) to break away from what he called an obsession with fiscal expansion, and instead adopt a fiscal stability code while restructuring government spending.