Koizumi eyes submitting postal privatisation bill to Diet next year
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Monday unveiled a set of measures, including a bill to privatise Japan’s postal system to be submitted to the ordinary Diet session next year, as part of his basic policy to further structural reform.
On the diplomatic front, the premier promised to focus more effort on reconstruction aid to postwar Iraq, a resolution of North Korean issues, and concluding a peace treaty between Japan and Russia.
The disclosure of the basic policy comes in line with Koizumi’s appointment of new executives of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the latest Cabinet reshuffle the same day.
The premier is seeking to draft a bill on postal privatization for submission to the ordinary Diet session convening next January after closely coordinating with the ruling and opposition parties and working out a detailed design of the postal system, government officials said.
The latest moves on the privatization initiative are based on formal Cabinet approval on Sept. 10 of a plan to split the state-run Japan Post into four entities at the start of a 10-year privatization process in April 2007.
Koizumi has placed postal privatization at the top of his structural reform agenda since assuming office in April 2001, but has faced strong opposition from ruling party lawmakers with vested interests.
His postal privatization plans, which are included among the five-item agenda unveiled under the basic policy, underscore his vision to shift control from the state to the private sector and extend greater fiscal autonomy from the state to local governments.
The four other items are the revitalization of economy by capitalizing on the vitality of the private sector and localities, ensuring social security, taking measures to deal with diplomatic, security and crisis management issues, and promotion of political reforms.
On economic revitalization, the premier vows to conclude the disposal of nonperforming loans at banks by late fiscal 2004, ending in March next year, and to lift the blanket protection of deposits as scheduled in fiscal 2005.
Referring to the so-called three-pillar reform on fiscal transfer, the basic policy stated that the call by local governmental organizations to relinquish state subsidies will be “seriously taken into account.”
Measures to carry out a comprehensive review of the nation’s medical security system, Social Insurance Agency reforms, and countermeasures to the falling birthrate were also cited.
