Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum has called for the speedy approval of a 14-trillion-won supplementary budget to support small business owners hit hard by COVID-19.

In a speech during an extraordinary session held Thursday, Kim urged lawmakers to promptly pass the extra budget bill submitted by the government, stressing that additional support is inevitable amid the fast spreading omicron variant. 

He said most of the extra budget will first be covered by Treasury bonds due to urgency, which will be repaid with the tax surplus beginning April, this year.

The prime minister also urged lawmakers to begin talks on ways to lower monthly rent choking small business owners amid the prolonged pandemic, saying relief funds alone can’t resolve financial woes.

The National Assembly began reviewing the extra budget bill following Kim's speech.