Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum stood by the government's position that a new round of COVID-19 relief payouts should only be given to the lower 80-percent income bracket.

This comes after the ruling Democratic Party(DP) decided to push the government to adjust the payment plan to include everyone.

At a parliamentary budget review on Thursday, Kim said the government set the standard in consideration of how the public would view making payments to people who haven't lost income during the pandemic.

When the ruling party pointed out the unnecessary administrative cost of over 50 billion won required for selective payouts, Kim said such a cost would arise even if the money was universally handed out.

The prime minister stressed that the debate over eligibility should not cause a delay in the payouts.