Taiwan's opposition is being accused of holding the government's spending plans hostage, and the people waiting on welfare, defense and cash handouts are the ones caught in the middle.

• KMT lawmaker Weng Hsiao-ling moved to cut and freeze the Presidential Office's discretionary fund, which would kill an order of 15,000 Mid-Autumn gift boxes from sheltered workshops and disability groups.
• The money would be released if President Lai publishes a law the legislature wants — turning oversight into a straight trade: do what we say and you get your funding back.
• KMT caucus leader Fu Kun-chi is also blocking next year's budget and pushing to raise the planned NT$10,000 cash handout to NT$20,000 or NT$30,000.
• Taiwan's constitution bars lawmakers from proposing spending increases, so the plan reportedly involves rewriting the budget law and passing a special statute to get around it.
• The warning is of "opposition dictatorship" — the hostages are not just Lai and Premier Cho, but everyone waiting on social welfare, construction, defense and wages.

Outlook: If the budget stays stuck through year-end, next year's cash handout and a wide range of government spending could be delayed.