Tokyo, Oct. 9 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government at a cabinet meeting Friday adopted legislation to cut the consumption tax rate for food and introduce a benefit program linked to income levels. As a temporary measure to tackle soaring prices, the government of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who heads the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, plans to cut the 8 pct consumption tax rate for food items to 1 pct for two years from fiscal 2027, which starts next April. It aims to submit the bill to the ongoing extraordinary session of the Diet, the country’s parliament, aiming to secure its enactment by the Dec. 12 end of the session. The consumption tax reduction would be the first since it was introduced in 1989. A total of some 10 trillion yen will be needed for the tax cut and the benefit program over the two years. The bill stipulates that the government does not plan to issue deficit-financing bonds to cover the costs. Full-fledged discussions on how to finance the tax cut and the benefit program will likely be held alongside the work late this year to compile the government’s fiscal 2027 budget. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
