No. 1397 Draft Budget for Fiscal 2025 Will Be Approved
The government’s draft budget of the General Account will be approved after rectifications of the estimates for free tuition fee for high school education, and others. Meanwhile, however, the draft budget for high-pitched military buildup and the one for reducing the consumption tax rate were not debated considerably. The current Diet session period will enter the latter half. We hope to see elaborate parliamentary discussions which appreciate the principles of the Constitution.
BOOSTING MILITARY BUILDUP AND REDUCING CONSUMPTION TAX RATE WERE NOT ON THE AGENDA
Draft budget was approved after rectifications
The rectified total sum of the budget for the General Account counts approximately 115 trillion and 200 billion yen, with a reduction by 279.3 billion yen from the initial figure. Currently the ruling bloc does not occupy the majority in the House of Representatives, so the draft budget was approved with a help from the Ishin (=Renovation) Party.
Three rectifications were made in the draft estimates; a partial review in the so-called ‘barrier of annual income’, free tuition fee for high school education and freezing of high-cost medical treatment benefit.
As for the ‘annual income tax threshold’, which the Kokumin Minshu-to (=Democratic Party for the People) robustly claimed, the minimum taxable income line was raised to 1.6 million yen from the current no-taxable annual income, which is called the ‘barrier of 1.03 million yen.’
A tax reduction counts approximately 20 thousand yen per year for a single person and 40 thousand yen for a dual-earner family. But the Kokumin could not reach an agreement with the ruling bloc as it demanded a bigger increase.
As for elimination of the limit of annual income for guaranteeing free high school education, which the Ishin Party has consistently demanded, that was successfully approved. From the fiscal 2026 the payment for education will be zero. During the fiscal 2025 ‘for a household whose annual income is less than 9.10 million yen the state government pays benefits maximumly 118,800 yen’, which is the current practice.
However, a budget for free high school education needs 400 billion yen annually, and so the government must seek for financial sources. Incidentally, concerning private high school education, classifications will be presented in terms of annual incomes of households. For Korean high schools, free education is not extended and the government maintains the current discriminatory policy.
Concerning benefits for high-cost medical treatment, a plan to surge the upper limit of payment owed by a patient was canceled when Prime Minister Ishiba met with the groups of patients suffering from cancer or intractable diseases.
People apparently leave ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)
People are dissatisfied with the Ishiba government as they suffer high prices and feel distrust in politics. According to the surveys conducted in March, a disapproval rate to the government was 45% in the NHK’s one and 44.1% in the Jiji’s. In particular, it rose to 58% in the Yomiuri’s survey, which coincided with the revelation of Premier’s scandal that he had delivered a voucher amounting 100 thousand yen to MPs elected for the first time.
Young people, especially, leave apparently the LDP. According to the NHK’s examination, an approval rate of the LDP ‘occupies a half among the age group of their 80s, but some 20% among the groups younger than fifty years of age.’ In the Jiji’s survey the approval rate was a single digit figure in the age groups younger than in their 40s.
Meanwhile, it was the Kokumin that has attracted the people exiting the LDP. Every survey shows the approval rate in favor of the Kokumin exceeded those in favor of the Constitutional Democratic Party, the biggest opposition party.
The results of these surveys indicate references to the July election for the House of Councilors; expanded ruptures inside the ruling LDP and severe competition among the opposition parties to gain voters.
Free choice of family name in marriage
Main issues for debates during the latter half of the parliamentary session include the issue of politics and money, pension system reform, and a law to cope with cyber-attacks, as well as reducing the consumption tax rate and impeding defiant military expenditure.
In particular, must be approved a law to provide free selection of a family name when people get married. A free choice means a struggle to respect every one of a variety of people in accordance with the Constitution and ‘build up a society that bans a war.’
政府一般会計予算案は「高校授業料無償化」等の修正の上で成立する。一方、消費税率引下げの課題や大軍拡予算はほぼ議論なしだった。国会後半へ、憲法を大切にする議論を積み上げたい。
３点修正し成立へ
修正した政府一般会計予算の総額は約１１５兆２千億円、当初案から２７９３億円減額。与党が衆院過半数を割る中、維新の会の賛成を得た展開となった。
予算修正は、「年収の壁」の一部見直し、高校授業料無償化、高額療養費据え置きの３点。
▽国民民主党が強く主張した「年収１０３万円の壁」の所得税非課税枠引き上げでは、課税最低限を１６０万円に引き上げた。独身者１人当たり年額２万円ほど、共働き家庭で年額４万円ほどの減額に。ただし、国民民主党は一層の引き上げを要求し、与党との協議は決裂した。
▽維新が求めた高校授業料無償化の所得制限撤廃は、26年度から完全無償化。25年度では現行「年収９１０万円未満の世帯に上限11万８８００円」を国が支援しているのを、所得制限を撤廃する。
ただし無償化実現には年額４千億円が必要とされ、財源が大きな課題となる。なお、私立は家庭の年収で区分。朝鮮学校へは無償化差別。
▽高額療養費制度の負担上限額引き上げは、石破首相ががんや難病の患者団体と面会した後、実施を見送った。
顕著な自民党離れ
しかし石破内閣へは、物価高騰や政治不信で国民の不満が強い。３月の世論調査での内閣不支持率はＮＨＫで45％、時事で44・１％、とくに首相の「10万円商品券配布」発覚と調査時点が重なった読売で58％に上った。
顕著なのが若い年齢層の自民党離れ
ＮＨＫ調査での自民党支持率は「80歳以上では半数を占めるのに、50歳以下では20％前後」となり、時事調査では40歳代までの支持率は一桁しかなかった。
一方、自民党離れを吸収したのが国民民主党で、どの調査でも立憲民主党への支持率を上回った。
これら調査結果は参議院選挙をにらんだ自民党内での確執拡大、そして野党間での支持獲得競争を予測させる。
選択的夫婦別姓を
後半国会は政治とカネの問題、年金制度改革、サイバー法案等、さらに消費税減税と大軍拡阻止が大きな問題となる。
とくに「選択的夫婦別姓制度」実現が大きな課題。選択制度は、憲法を基に多様な一人ひとりを大切にし、「戦争をさせない社会づくり」への闘いでもある。
英訳版↓
No. 1397 Draft Budget for Fiscal 2025 Will Be Approved
The government’s draft budget of the General Account will be approved after rectifications of the estimates for free tuition fee for high school education, and others. Meanwhile, however, the draft budget for high-pitched military buildup and the one for reducing the consumption tax rate were not debated considerably. The current Diet session period will enter the latter half. We hope to see elaborate parliamentary discussions which appreciate the principles of the Constitution.
BOOSTING MILITARY BUILDUP AND REDUCING CONSUMPTION TAX RATE WERE NOT ON THE AGENDA
Draft budget was approved after rectifications
The rectified total sum of the budget for the General Account counts approximately 115 trillion and 200 billion yen, with a reduction by 279.3 billion yen from the initial figure. Currently the ruling bloc does not occupy the majority in the House of Representatives, so the draft budget was approved with a help from the Ishin (=Renovation) Party.
Three rectifications were made in the draft estimates; a partial review in the so-called ‘barrier of annual income’, free tuition fee for high school education and freezing of high-cost medical treatment benefit.
A tax reduction counts approximately 20 thousand yen per year for a single person and 40 thousand yen for a dual-earner family. But the Kokumin could not reach an agreement with the ruling bloc as it demanded a bigger increase.
However, a budget for free high school education needs 400 billion yen annually, and so the government must seek for financial sources. Incidentally, concerning private high school education, classifications will be presented in terms of annual incomes of households. For Korean high schools, free education is not extended and the government maintains the current discriminatory policy.
People apparently leave ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)
People are dissatisfied with the Ishiba government as they suffer high prices and feel distrust in politics. According to the surveys conducted in March, a disapproval rate to the government was 45% in the NHK’s one and 44.1% in the Jiji’s. In particular, it rose to 58% in the Yomiuri’s survey, which coincided with the revelation of Premier’s scandal that he had delivered a voucher amounting 100 thousand yen to MPs elected for the first time.
Young people, especially, leave apparently the LDP. According to the NHK’s examination, an approval rate of the LDP ‘occupies a half among the age group of their 80s, but some 20% among the groups younger than fifty years of age.’ In the Jiji’s survey the approval rate was a single digit figure in the age groups younger than in their 40s.
Meanwhile, it was the Kokumin that has attracted the people exiting the LDP. Every survey shows the approval rate in favor of the Kokumin exceeded those in favor of the Constitutional Democratic Party, the biggest opposition party.
The results of these surveys indicate references to the July election for the House of Councilors; expanded ruptures inside the ruling LDP and severe competition among the opposition parties to gain voters.
Free choice of family name in marriage
Main issues for debates during the latter half of the parliamentary session include the issue of politics and money, pension system reform, and a law to cope with cyber-attacks, as well as reducing the consumption tax rate and impeding defiant military expenditure.
In particular, must be approved a law to provide free selection of a family name when people get married. A free choice means a struggle to respect every one of a variety of people in accordance with the Constitution and ‘build up a society that bans a war.’
April 2, 2025