Digest

Promotion of the carbon tax became extremely difficult for the Hashimoto government, as clarified by two interviews given to JIPR. However,discussions about the new tax system which lumps various taxes into the category of forest environmental tax have been initiated, and taxes which relate to the environment are now under study and will be further discussed.
A strategic social plan, which considers how the entire social system changes with the introduction of a new tax system, is strongly recommended for the future.

By the way, when analyzing financial problems, it is very important to review public business expenses and subsidies of those industries which influence the environment.As a short-term political goal,the greatest possible action in support of the environment might be the serious review of useless, ineffectual investments.

Actually,as many as 44.2% of the section chiefs in charge of finance within a central ministry regard public business expenses as unnecessary in the society, according to the questionnaire results of the investigation undertaken by the Mitsubishi Research Institute under the Financial and Structural Reformation Planning Committee concerning public business expenses.(April 24,1997)

In fact,the income received by the construction industry in Japan from such public business expenses is a very high percentage of the GDP in comparison to the situation in other foreign countries. The industrial world has synchronized itself to take maximum advantage of the political system which has coupled local developmental budgets with subsidies and public business expenses, which have become viewed as necessary for making a living.

First of all, it is crucial to suppress an increase in a public investment when it does not synchronize with the behavior of private investment. Next, it is necessary and indispensable to reconsider those investment plans which were made to fit the special characteristics of a certain region and were meant to achieve results after a moderate or long period of time.

Prime Minister Hashimoto insisted on a 7% reduction of public business expenses in the coming year when the new budget was discussed at the Financial Reformation Conference.

Construction methods,the methods used when designing new projects, the current consensus of what constitutes the ideal construction project, the social structures involved with the maintenance of capital that effects the environment -- there is a need to demand that such factors be investigated in the future.