Taiwan's premier says cuts to his office's budget mean he can only offer phone calls to southern flood victims, and the opposition says that is a political dodge.

• Cho Jung-tai said slashed funding limits his response to flooding in the south, but promised the government will still find ways to help.
• The KMT says the Cabinet has plenty of disaster money available and is using victims to blame the legislature.
• Opposition figures point to a central tax fund worth roughly NT$35 billion a year, of which only about a fifth had been paid out by the end of June.
• After last year's typhoon and heavy rains, the Cabinet released billions for recovery, including a chunk from that same emergency fund — proof the mechanism works.
• The KMT wants the Cabinet to publish exactly which disaster and flood-control line items were cut and how much is left, instead of lumping everything together.

Outlook: Expect pressure on the Cabinet to disclose its disaster spending figures and release emergency funds for the flooded southern counties within days.