DPFP Vows to Boost Take-Home Pay in Election Pledges

Tokyo, Jan. 22 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese opposition Democratic Party for the People announced Thursday its pledges for the Feb. 8 House of Representatives election, vowing to increase people’s take-home pay. The pledges include lowering the consumption tax rate to 5 pct, increasing the deduction for residential tax and scrapping the income cap in relation to a policy of raising the minimum annual taxable income level to 1.78 million yen. While listing measures to alleviate the burden on taxpayers, the DPFP pledged not to raise taxes for the time being. As part of social security reform, the party proposed creating a system to refund some of insurance premiums, reducing premium payments by small businesses that raise wages and abolishing a surcharge on public medical insurance premiums intended to finance aid measures for children and child-rearing. It also called for ending a surcharge on electricity bills aimed at promoting renewable energy. The DPFP vowed to double spending on child-rearing, education and science and technology, covering the outlays through the creation of so-called education bonds. Under the proposal, 5 trillion yen of such government bonds will be issued annually. The general election for the all-important lower chamber of the Diet, Japan’s parliament, will come after the Lower House is dissolved Friday. The Lower House race is set to officially kick off Tuesday. Among other pledges is the establishment of a marine resource development agency to prepare for full-scale mining of rare earths in Japan. “We want to contest the election with our achievements as an opposition party that can realize policies,” DPFP chief Yuichiro Tamaki said at a press conference in Tokyo on Thursday. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]