▲ Lee Hye-hoon, the nominee for the minister for planning and budget, arrives at her temporary office in Seoul on Jan. 22, 2026, to prepare for her parliamentary confirmation hearing. (Yonhap)

minister nominee-confirmation hearing

Rival parties agree to hold confirmation hearing for budget minister nominee Friday

By Yi Wonju

SEOUL, Jan. 22 (Yonhap) -- Rival parties agreed Thursday to hold a confirmation hearing this week for Lee Hye-hoon, nominee to lead the newly established Ministry of Planning and Budget, after weeks of partisan wrangling over allegations surrounding the nominee

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) and the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) agreed to hold the hearing on Friday on the condition that Lee submit key documents requested by the lawmakers, officials said.

The hearing was initially scheduled Monday but was delayed after the rival parties clashed, with the PPP arguing that the documents were incomplete, during a plenary meeting of the Strategy and Finance Committee's meeting.

The committee's chair, Rep. Lim Lee-ja of the PPP, suspended the session and instructed the rival parties to hold further talks to narrow their differences.

The nominee, a former three-term lawmaker from the conservative bloc, has drawn criticism from both ruling and opposition parties following President Lee Jae Myung's nomination last month.

The opposition bloc has urged nominee Lee to step down, citing suspicions related to her husband's real estate dealings and allegations over her treatment of subordinates and an intern during her tenure as a lawmaker.

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