January 7, 2016
Japanese Communist Party Diet Policy Commission Chair Kokuta Keiji at a plenary session of the Diet on January 6 on behalf of the JCP made an interpellation regarding government fiscal policy, saying that Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s economic policy “Abenomics” has failed.
Kokuta pointed out that under the Abe government, large corporations gained their largest-ever profits and added more than 300 trillion yen to their internal reserves. On the other hand, he went on to say, the number of those workers who earn less than two million yen a year exceeded 11 million. “Abenomics has increased economic inequality and poverty,” Kokuta stressed.
Criticizing the government plan to continue to lower the corporate tax rate to meet the request of the Japan Business Federation, Kokuta demanded that the government stop providing preferential tax treatments to big businesses and force wealthy companies to shoulder their fair share of the tax burden.
In response, PM Abe only said that the government will help companies improve their profitability in order to encourage them to increase wages and make more investments. This indicates that the prime minister still clings to the idea that if companies make more profits, people will become better off in the end – the widely discredited “trickledown theory”.
Kokuta also pointed out that the Abe government plans to impose a higher consumption tax rate on the general public and slash social welfare programs.
Kokuta argued that the government, in order to ease public opposition, decided to maintain the consumption tax rate on food at the current 8% even after the tax rate will increase to 10% in April 2017. Yet still, he said, the amount of the tax hike will be 4.5 trillion yen, which translates to 40,000 yen per household. He demanded the cancellation of the planned tax hike.
PM Abe replied that all the additional tax income will be used to stabilize the economy and strengthen the social security system.
Kokuta pointed out that under the Abe government, large corporations gained their largest-ever profits and added more than 300 trillion yen to their internal reserves. On the other hand, he went on to say, the number of those workers who earn less than two million yen a year exceeded 11 million. “Abenomics has increased economic inequality and poverty,” Kokuta stressed.
Criticizing the government plan to continue to lower the corporate tax rate to meet the request of the Japan Business Federation, Kokuta demanded that the government stop providing preferential tax treatments to big businesses and force wealthy companies to shoulder their fair share of the tax burden.
In response, PM Abe only said that the government will help companies improve their profitability in order to encourage them to increase wages and make more investments. This indicates that the prime minister still clings to the idea that if companies make more profits, people will become better off in the end – the widely discredited “trickledown theory”.
Kokuta also pointed out that the Abe government plans to impose a higher consumption tax rate on the general public and slash social welfare programs.
Kokuta argued that the government, in order to ease public opposition, decided to maintain the consumption tax rate on food at the current 8% even after the tax rate will increase to 10% in April 2017. Yet still, he said, the amount of the tax hike will be 4.5 trillion yen, which translates to 40,000 yen per household. He demanded the cancellation of the planned tax hike.
PM Abe replied that all the additional tax income will be used to stabilize the economy and strengthen the social security system.
