Takaichi to Instruct LDP Thurs. on Consumption Tax Cut

Tokyo, July 29 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is set to instruct senior officials of her ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Thursday to make necessary preparations for a law revision to implement a two-year consumption tax rate cut to 1 pct from April 2027 for food items. The government and the ruling coalition, which also includes the Japan Innovation Party, hope to formalize the tax cut policy in early August and submit a bill to amend related legislation to an extraordinary session of the Diet, the country’s parliament, seen to be convened this autumn. They aim to enact the bill during the session. At a meeting of the suprapartisan National Council on Social Security on Wednesday, a working group of the panel submitted a draft interim report on the matter. The report includes the planned consumption tax reduction and opposition parties’ opinions objecting to the tax cut and calling for the early introduction of a cash benefit program instead. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]