Let's go digital, reduce the number of government employees, and put the government in the black (for profit)!

PB will remain in the red in FY2050," the Keizai Doyukai (Japan Association of Corporate Executives) estimated. The ratio of national and local government debt to GDP is already expected to reach 208% in FY21, the worst among developed countries, and will worsen to 260% in FY50. To bring this ratio down each year, they also estimated that the consumption tax rate would need to be raised by 1% each year from FY26 to FY34 to 19%. Comment: While Mr. Yanai of UNIQLO has stated that the government should restructure half of its civil servants and cut government spending in half, Masahiro Ishizuka, a web programmer and IT consultant, advocates and proposes the following. Improve the online application system and make drivers' licenses and pocketbooks paperless by using smartphones, tablets, and PC apps with anti-counterfeiting functions that can be changed over time. We should move to a world of electronic money only with the abolition of cash in Estonia's e-government and a national system that does not require tax returns. First, abolish prefectural and municipal government buildings and use only small offices, with call centers and convenience stores as replacements, leaving only prefectural governors and heads of municipalities as government bureaucrats. Restructure all civil servants. The central government also abolishes all government buildings, leaving only small offices. Restructure 19/20 of the civil servants, leaving only 1/20. The National Diet building should also be abolished and only the online Diet session should be used. This will turn the budget deficit into a budget surplus. Based on the successful examples of France and Russia with low birthrates and aging populations, subsidies and subsidies can also be provided.

Asahi Shimbun Digital Article

Hiroaki Kimura and Ken Sakakibara, Expert Reporters, May 12, 2021, 7:00 PM

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PB estimates by the Cabinet Office and Keizai Doyukai

[PR]

　On November 11, the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai) released estimates of the primary balance (PB) of the central and local governments, which the government is aiming to return to surplus as an indicator of fiscal soundness, and which it says will remain in the red even in FY2050 if economic growth remains at the current level. The government has set a target of returning to a surplus in FY25, and the association is calling for the need for a realistic target.

　A PB surplus would allow the government to cover policy expenses such as social security without resorting to new borrowing. However, according to the Cabinet Office's calculations, even if high economic growth is achieved, a surplus will only be achieved in FY29. If the economy grows at the current level, it will remain in the red even in FY30, and the deficit will amount to 1.6% of the gross domestic product (GDP).

　Therefore, the association made its own calculations for the situation from FY31 to FY50, reproducing the Cabinet Office's estimation method as much as possible. As a result, if growth remains at the current level, the PB will remain in the red in FY50, and the deficit will increase to 1.8% of GDP.

　At a press conference on November 11, Takasi Kozu, president of the Ricoh Institute of Economic and Social Research, who compiled the estimates for the Doyukai, stressed the need for the government to set realistic fiscal reconstruction targets, pointing out that "we must start discussions on how the current generation will deal with the debt associated with the Corona measures.

　The association said that the government should start considering concrete ways to rebuild its finances after the Corona, referring to the special account for reconstruction that managed money for reconstruction separately from the regular budget at the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the special reconstruction tax that was introduced to finance this account.

　Meanwhile, the current fiscal year will mark the year in which the government will review its efforts to date toward achieving a PB surplus in FY 2013. The government intends to study measures to achieve the goal and reflect them in the government's "policy for the backbone of the economy," which is to be finalized by June.

　For now, Finance Minister Taro Aso is cautious about revising the target itself, saying, "We will continue our spending reform efforts to achieve the target of returning the PB to surplus in FY25. However, since the government first set the target of returning the PB to surplus in FY02, it has continued to postpone the goal without ever achieving it, and many are skeptical about achieving the target this time. (Specialized reporters: Hiroaki Kimura and Ken Sakakibara)