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On June 11, Prime Minister Naoto Kan gave a policy speech to the Diet, saying that the mission of his Cabinet would be “to break through the impasse that has lasted twenty years, and restore Japan’s vitality”. He urged the Japanese people: “place your trust in me”.
At the start of his speech, Kan stressed that the DPJ government was making a new start, saying: “As the helm of government passes to me in the wake of my predecessor’s courageous decision, I believe my greatest duty is to return to the origins of that historic change of government, overcome our recent setbacks and regain the trust of the Japanese people.”
Kan looked back on his career as a grassroots activist, who had entered politics without an electoral base, and stressed, “It is possible to play a part in politics if you have the motivation and make the necessary effort. This is the kind of politics we should seek to achieve.”
He said that the three main policy challenges faced by the administration were “An Exhaustive Clean-up of Post-war Government”, “Shoring up the Economy, Public finances and Social Security in an Integrated Manner” and “Foreign Policy and National Security Policy Grounded in a Sense of Responsibility”, and went on to explain about each of these in detail.
In the section of his speech entitled “An Exhaustive Clean-up of Post-war Government”, Kan vowed to continue with reforms, stressing that he would implement thorough elimination of waste, elimination of vertical segmentation between ministries and agencies, prohibition of amakudari (golden parachuting) by civil servants, and breaking down the “closed door” nature of the government. Kan went on to say that he would promote reforms for regional sovereignty.
In “Shoring up the Economy, Public finances and Social Security in an Integrated Manner”, Kan said he would use these policies to free Japan from its state of stagnation, and “build a society whose people can hold hope for their future.” He said that this would be achieved through a “Third Way”, which aims to turn the problems besetting the economy and society into opportunities for creating new demand and employment, and to link them to new forms of growth. He expressed his resolution, saying, “The new Cabinet is determined to exert strong political leadership in order to bring about “a strong economy”, “robust public finances” and “a strong social security system” in an integrated manner.”
Kan stated that achieving “a strong economy” requires the creation of stable demand both domestically and externally as well as the establishment of an economic structure enabling wealth to be widely circulated. He said that he would aim for the development of “green innovation” and “life innovation”, engaging in promoting the growth of the Asian economy as a market for Japan, encouraging the development of Japan as a tourist destination and revitalizing the regions. He went on to say that he would target an average annual growth rate of over 3% in nominal terms, or 2% in real terms, by fiscal 2020.
In discussing “robust public finances” Kan stated that he would embark on thorough reform of the tax system in order to rescue public finances from their currently critical condition. He called on Diet members from all parties “to create a nonpartisan ‘Conference to Consider Restoring Fiscal Health’, consisting of Diet members who understand the critical importance of building healthy public finances, and work together to advance constructive debate.”
In discussing “a strong social security system” Kan expressed the opinion that the economy, public finances and social security exist in a mutually-beneficial relationship, and that the provision of stable social security will provide reassurance to the people and lead to sustainable growth.
Kan went on to stress the importance of creating “a society inclusive of every single person”, stating that he would aim for a society that would ensure that no one would be excluded from social support networks.
In “Foreign Policy and National Security Policy Grounded in a Sense of Responsibility”, Kan commented, “In what fashion do we wish to shape Japan? Are we prepared to pay a price at times for the sake of our nation? I believe that each member of the public should be aware of this responsibility, and that foreign policy should be conducted against that backdrop”, emphasizing the ideal of world peace, while indicating that the basis for foreign policy should be a “balanced pragmatism”. He went on to reiterate that the Japan-US alliance is the lynchpin of Japan’s diplomacy, while calling for enhanced relationships with Asian nations. With regard to the issue of the relocation of Futenma, Kan said the relocation and return of Futenma and the transfer of a portion of the US Marines stationed in Okinawa must be realized, and that he would make every effort to reduce the burden placed on Okinawa.
In closing, Kan called for the support of the Japanese people as he strove to become a prime minister who could exert true leadership.
A full English translation of the policy speech is available at:
http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/kan/statement/201006/11syosin_e.html
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