Japan Press Weekly

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2012 February 8 - 14 [LABOR]

Panasonic asked to pay back 1.26 billion yen by local gov’t

The Hyogo Prefectural government on February 7 decided to request Panasonic Plasma Display Co., Ltd. to pay back 1.26 billion yen in prefectural subsidies because Panasonic will substantially cutback production at its factories in the prefecture.

Panasonic set up three plasma display plants in Hyogo’s Amagasaki City in 2005. The prefectural government has since contributed 7.84 billion yen in subsidies to these plants and planned to provide another 21.8 billion yen to other plants in other cities in the prefecture.

However, in October last year, Panasonic announced that it will discontinue the production at two of its three plants in Amagasaki City.

Hyogo Governor Ido Toshizo said, “We have provided the subsidy with the promise that Panasonic would operate its plants in Amagasaki at least for ten years. Panasonic should pay back this subsidy.”

Japanese Communist Party member of the Hyogo Prefectural Assembly, Miyata Shizunori said, “The return of the subsidy is what the JCP is calling for. Panasonic should return not only a part but all the subsidy payments it received.”

He added, “Prefectural subsidies to attract large manufacturers to operate here have had little effect in improving the local economy or increasing tax revenues. We, prefectural assembly members, must seriously reconsider the corporate subsidy system.”