Egelion

[Louis]

Since the beginning of his young reign, King Artemio has traveled throughout Egelion hoping to catch an insightful glimpse of the current state of the nation and visualizing first-hand what the nation's residents desire from the new head of state. As he traveled from Norterra in the north all the way to Cartablanca in the south, King Artemio found a nation living comfortably and happily. While he was satisfied with what he saw in rural and suburban areas, the heavily populated urban areas brought his attention. During his conversations with local leaders and regular citizens, King Artemio became concerned with the current reach and efficiency of the nation's CROWN Welfare System. Established in 5629 by King Romulo during the early Egelian reformation, the CROWN Welfare system was a 450 Billion Egelian Crown investment meant to adress the clear lack of social assistance in the nation. Since its creation, the CROWN welfare system has helped lower unemployment rates, keep poverty effects low, and has guaranteed public health insurance for over 73% off the Egelian population. Yet, during King Artemio's tour of Egelion, he found that the system is in need of desperate modernization and new programs to keep its systems fully-functioning. 

At a presser at Sorseula Palace, High Councilor Formoselle y Castilla, announced that King Artemio would meet with all 200 members of the Royal Court to talk about his new decree: a 300 billion Crown investment into reforming the CROWN Welfare System. According to details released by Formoselle y Castilla, the expansion of CROWN would seek to add new medical professionals, a university-to workplace apprenticeship system, more inclusions and regulations of the unemployment service, increased benefits for Crown Insurance holders, an expansion of the child-care system within Crown Insurance, and finally adjusting the tiers of income for those on Crown Insurance. These several changes would not replace the current funding for the welfare system, instead be in addition to it. High Councilor Formoselle y Castilla stated that overall expenditure on the Welfare system alone would be in the 700-800 billion Crown mark for the royal government--a move that King Artemio prioritized over other measures such as continued military expansion. When asked about other expenditures, the high Councilor stated that the  King would much rather prioritize concerns over education, welfare and the pension, instead of other sectors such as the military and tourism. "At the end of the day, His Majesty wants to ensure that the people of the kingdom have the right to a job, have the right to an education, and have the right to enjoy their life properly. While we still support the current robust state of the armed forces, their priority at the moment is sidelined--not eliminated."

Royal Councilor Ibarra, who speaks for the Royal Treasury, states that current funds for the expansion of the CROWN System exist but take away a large chunk of the saving and surplus that the government has operated on for the past several years. While funding is not an issue at the moment per the Royal Treasury, they caution Altea not to overindulge in extra spending simply because it has the means. The fiscally conservative Ibarra family stated that the surplus found at the treasury should be instead reverted to a long-term investment fund or an emergency-day fund to avoid constant withdrawals by the royal government. Even at this stage, the King and the council remain hopeful that the current and future funding for the CROWN system is in itself a long-term investment of the Egelian people and their future prosperity.