Business leaders welcomed Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto's announcement to implement 2 trillion yen in additional tax cuts this year, but reiterated that the government should change the taxation system to implement the cuts permanently.
"We hope that income tax cuts of 4 trillion yen and corporate tax cuts of 3 trillion yen will be permanent under the tax reform and that the government will establish bright prospects for Japanese people by doing so," said Shoichiro Toyoda, chairman of the Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren).
Jiro Nemoto, chairman of the Japan Federation of Employers' Associations (Nikkeiren) welcomed the prime minister's readiness for the tax cuts and revision of the Fiscal Structural Reform Law to suspend implementation of austerity measures.
Kosaku Inaba, chairman of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, stressed the importance of revising the Fiscal Structural Reform Law before the end of the current Diet session.
Inaba welcomed the 10 trillion yen designated for public works projects, saying that it will have a positive impact on the nation's economy. However, he said that severe conditions surrounding small and medium-size corporations are severe and added that an additional 2 trillion yen in tax cuts will not be enough for the current year.