By Ho Yu-hua, Tung Kuang-i and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporters, with staff writersTaipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an （蔣萬安） of the Chinese Nationalist Party （KMT） and Democratic Progressive Party Legislator and mayoral candidate Puma Shen （沈伯洋） yesterday clashed over competing subsidies to help expectant mothers.請繼續往下閱讀...Chiang announced his policies at a news conference in Taipei yesterday, saying the measures to provide financial assistance to new or expectant mothers would go into effect in stages over the next few months.Taipei would provide mothers with a NT$30,000 childbirth subsidy for each newborn, without income or wealth-based restrictions, starting next month, he said.The measure would benefit an estimated 11,000 women a year, he added.Subsidies for in vitro fertilization would be expanded to include women aged 25 to 40, and those whose fertility has been negatively impacted by illness or medical procedures, starting from January next year, he said.The subsidy’s ceiling would be raised from NT$20,000 to NT$40,000 and cover up to NT$12,000 of the upkeep cost for frozen eggs for up to four years, Chiang said.The city in October would establish a joint program at hospitals that new families could use to consult on childcare issues, combining the services of pediatricians, nutritionists, caretakers and social workers, he said.Taipei’s one-lump-sum subsidy to help expectant mothers commute by electric vehicles six months before their due date is to be increased from NT$8,000 to NT$10,000, Chiang said.The validity period of the commute subsidy would be extended to a year after giving birth, he added.Eligibility for digital tokens that parents can use for a total of eight hours of free temporary infant childcare would be expanded to all newborns younger than two, up from age one previously, he said.The digital token policy — which has yet to be implemented — would enter into force next month, he added.There would also be tax deductions for households with children, with the goal of exempting them from land value tax and house tax altogether, Chiang said.The municipality is to continue carrying out its social housing program to give couples wed for less than two years and households with children a 20 percent rent discount, he said.Shen said the mayor’s policies were overly focused on births.He said his platform includes a youth fund that enables Taipei residents to withdraw NT$500,000 upon reaching 22 years old to help them start their careers, a secure digital portal for young people to use large language models and a mechanism for reporting school bullying.The financial pressure on families cannot be addressed without offering comprehensive support for childcare, education, employment and career changes for middle-aged workers, Shen said, adding that they are included in his vision for Taipei.Should he be elected mayor, he said he would provide benefits for Taipei residents from infancy to 45 years old and reinforce care for older people.新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
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