Japan should maintain universal postal services
The government should maintain the current universal postal services throughout the nation even after the privatisation of Japan Post, according to a draft proposal by a government panel.
The draft is expected to be endorsed by the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy, a key economic policy-setting panel.
It says the government “should establish a framework enabling (a privatised postal entity) to provide universal services.”
Some critics have said the fact that post offices are legally required to provide uniform services nationwide, including charging the same postage rates, contributes to a high-cost structure and that it should be reviewed when they are privatised.
The draft also says the three postal services of mail delivery, savings and “kampo” life insurance should become more “self-supportive” in management.
It apparently calls on post offices to improve profitability of mail delivery services so that they do not have to rely on life insurance operations in securing profits.
As for the savings and life insurance services, the draft says their “huge assets should be smoothly integrated with (funds managed by) private-sector financial systems.”
It also calls on the government to fully privatise Japan Post around 2017 after a 10-year transitional period to start in 2007, saying postal privatisation “is unavoidable for boosting the Japanese economy.”
Japan Post was created in April 2003 as a public corporation to take over the government-run mail delivery, postal savings and “kampo” operations. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has made privatising Japan Post one of his key policy goals.
