Japan Press Weekly

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2015 April 8 - 14 [WELFARE]

JCP calls on gov’t to cancel plan to slash housing assistance for households on welfare

Japanese Communist Party member of the House of Councilors Tatsumi Kotaro on April 7 at a House Welfare Committee meeting urged the government to cancel its plan to cut the amount of housing assistance payments for welfare recipient households.

Tatsumi pointed out that if the government plan is implemented, 440,000 welfare recipient families will probably be forced to move out of their current places of residence. Stating that securing places to live is a fundamental human right, Tatsumi demanded the withdrawal of the plan.

Meanwhile, the number of households receiving public assistance has been on the rise since the late 1990s and, in January, reached a record high of 1,618,817. This reflects the inadequacy of Japan’s social welfare programs, including pension programs, and the deepening of social inequalities.


Past related article:
> People on welfare protest planned slashes in welfare benefits [January 9, 2015]