Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto said Monday that the government will review all its regulations by the end of this century.
Overall deregulation will be indispensable for the nation's plan to transform the current bloated administrative system into a slimmer and more efficient one for the 21st century, Hashimoto was quoted as saying by Chief Cabinet Secretary Kanezo Muraoka.
Hashimoto made the remarks during the first meeting of a government panel set up to watch over a new government deregulation plan, which covers 624 items in 15 fields, such as electricity retail and domestic aviation.
The panel, headed by Orix Corp. President Yoshihiko Miyauchi, is made up of 11 prominent figures from the private sector, including businessmen and researchers. Hashimoto requested members to make suggestions from wider viewpoints, regardless of their expertise.
He also said that the discretionary power of the administration should be minimized, and that it should check the private sector retrospectively based on clear rules, instead of prospectively imposing regulations.