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 Carry out economic revival to create a dynamic economy with no unemployment |
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We cannot afford to neglect any longer the daily erosion of people's jobs and assets that has resulted from the serious deflation that the Koizumi cabinet's woefully inadequate economic policies have caused. The restoration of a dynamic economy is the minimum requirement for giving all our citizens peace of mind in their daily lives, and is a prerequisite for the fruitful implementation of all other policies.
The issue to which the DPJ will give first priority is the regeneration of Japan's dynamic economy, and to that end we will devote our full energy to achieving an economic recovery and assuring a stable employment situation. |
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1-1 Achieve economic recovery, creating jobs and employment.
In order to revive our dynamic economy to achieve economic recovery and boost employment, it will be essential to expand domestic demand by stimulating private-sector demand. We will take a solid first step towards economic revival by sweeping away unease about current and future conditions, and by stimulating the creation of new jobs and industries to cater for dormant demand.
(1) Lower unemployment to below 4.5%.
Our aim during our term of office is to bring the unemployment rate down from the current mid-5% level to below 4.5% by expanding new job opportunities and increasing employment. Means to achieve that will include the implementation of regional economic stimulus measures through assistance to SMEs and decentralization, the reorientation of public works towards "green dams" and similar projects, the nurturing of industries in the spheres of welfare and the environment, the development of a high-quality living environment, and the nurturing of NPOs, thereby actively creating employment, including in the public sector. We will also improve job retraining so as to give full play to private-sector ingenuity and originality.
(2) Stimulate demand and consumption by dispelling anxieties in such as areas as living standards for the elderly and childrearing.
We will stimulate consumption by eliminating anxieties people feel about current conditions and the future in such areas as pensions and nursing care, childrearing and education, and healthcare. In particular we will breed peace of mind and create new jobs by nurturing industries to create a comfortable society for our senior citizens, and industries to create a society in which it is easy to rear children.
(3) Switch to an economy in which importance is placed on the quality of life, e.g. by establishing a system that makes loan interest deductible.
We will arouse latent demand and foster the development of an economy in which importance is placed on the quality of life: an economy oriented towards services. The means we will employ will include, as an emergency measure, the establishment in 2004 of a system of tax deductions for interest on loans for homes and cars, and also the lowering of distribution costs by making motorways toll-free, the development of infrastructure to enable people to make effective use of their leisure time, and the nurturing of environmentally friendly industries.
(4) Expedite the removal in principle of the regulation on business activity, and stimulate corporate endeavour and motivation for business start-ups.
To induce private sector vigour and creativity and to stimulate new demand, we will take steps such as eliminating regulations on business activity in the private sector and ensuring an environment conducive to fair competition. To that end, in 2005 we will submit bills to the Diet that set out matters such as basic policy for the elimination in principle of business regulations.
(5) Promote the creation of a nation grounded on intellectual property rights, so as to enhance competitiveness and technical capabilities.
We will endeavour to strengthen intellectual property rights in pursuit of a strategy of strengthening international competitiveness and promoting science and technology. We will make the Intellectual Property Basic Law firmer, and take steps to enhance mechanisms for dealing with intellectual-property disputes, to conduct the training of experts in intellectual property rights, to strengthen industry-academia collaboration in the regions and elsewhere, to revise budget allocations for research and development, to create an improved environment conducive to increasing the motivation of research scientists, to develop Technology Licensing Organizations (TLOs), and to strengthen measures to deal with the problem of counterfeit goods and with infringements of patent rights.
1-2 Create creditworthy banks.
After forming the administration we will move rapidly to implement the DPJ Financial Revival Final Plan, with the objective of restoring credit creation and financial intermediation functions within two years.
(1) When dealing with SME finance (financing based on personal credit, including for the self-employed), we will make a clear distinction from lending to large companies. Separately from those for large companies we will produce inspection manuals for SME financing in which emphasis is placed on cash flow rather than placing reliance on security, and reluctance to lend and forcible withdrawal of funds will be eliminated. In addition, the system whereby individuals act as guarantors for loans by governmental financial institutions will be abolished within five years.
(2) During the 2004 fiscal year we will submit to the Diet a bill for the facilitation of regional finance, which will require the disclosure of information on matters such as the extent to which financial institutions contribute in the regions, and their terms for SME financing.
(3) With respect to lending to large companies, we will ensure the clarification of the state of non-performing loans by means of rigorous financial inspections. At the same time as exposing the responsibility of large companies, bank executives, and the authorities for the bubble economy, we will if necessary take bold steps to inject public funds to enable banks to recover their lending capacity.
1-3 Drastically revise the use of tax revenues, and secure financial resources.
Under deflationary conditions it is very difficult to either raise tax revenues or make substantial reductions in government appropriations. Therefore, after the DPJ forms the administration it will as a rule maintain the present scale of public finances until such time as the economy is able to achieve stable growth.
Economic revival will be given the highest priority as a means to restore soundness to public finances. However, reckless administration of public finances at this time, which pays no regard to the effect it is having, will not only impose too great a burden on future generations, but will also fan mistrust of public finances by, for example, increasing people's anxiety about the future and bringing about sharp rises in long-term interest rates, and as a result will hamper an economic revival.
By totally eradicating the monster that preys on our tax money and by taking immediate resolute steps to change the way budgets are used, we will pursue economic revival while at the same time maintaining fiscal discipline.
In the 2004 fiscal year we will raise approximately ¥1.4 trillion, including ¥300 billion by reducing public works under the government's direct control by 10%, ¥200 billion by such means as reducing administration costs by making certain grants payable in lump sums, and ¥400 billion from a 10% reduction in disbursements to special corporations and similar bodies. These will serve as resources to fund the implementation of our administration's public commitments.
In the 2005 fiscal year we will raise approximately ﾂ?2.5 trillion, including ¥600 billion by reducing public works under the government's direct control by 20%, ¥700 billion by reducing by 5% the grants eligible to be paid in lump sums, through expansion of the scope of grants to be paid in lump sums, and ¥800 billion from a 20% reduction in disbursements to special corporations and similar bodies. These too will serve as resources to fund the implementation of our administration's public commitments.
1-4 Formulate a 5-year economic revival plan and fiscal reconstruction plan.
Upon assuming office we will immediately formulate emergency countermeasures, and at the same time proceed with the preparation of more comprehensive measures to bring about economic revival. First, as the new administration we will identify and disclose publicly the most vital economic, monetary, and fiscal information concealed from the people by government ministries and agencies. Based on that we will prepare, during the 2004 fiscal year, a 5-year economic revival plan for sweeping away the effluent and waste in the economic, monetary, and fiscal spheres, and for building a dynamic economy led by private-sector demand.
While putting the economic revival on track, by the summer of 2005 (the start of budget compilation for the 2006 fiscal year) we will also formulate a fiscal reconstruction plan with the specific aim of putting a stop to the real increase in government borrowing over a 10 to 15-year period. It will enable us to avoid bequeathing an excessive burden to future generations and to establish sustainable public finance.
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