Japan should concentrate over the next two years on achieving economic recovery and enact a basic law toward economic resuscitation, according to a basic policy draft adopted by the Liberal Party's executive council Thursday.
The policy package, which will be formally endorsed at the party convention Monday, also calls for creating laws to enable a referendum to amend the Constitution.
To achieve this, a concurring vote of two-thirds or more of all Upper and Lower House members is required and that must be approved by a majority vote at a special referendum. But so far, Japan has no legislation that spells out detailed procedures for conducting such a vote.
The policy package covers short- to long-term issues that the Liberal Party must tackle, covering anything from the economy to social welfare and national security issues.
On the economic front, the party's policy package calls for creating a basic law to resuscitate the economy through accelerating deregulation and implementing large-scale tax cuts funded by administrative reforms.
Additional bold measures must be swiftly carried out to stimulate public demand, according to the draft.
In regards to budget allocations, the Liberal Party calls for greater focus on large-scale public projects such as ongoing bullet train and airport projects. Also, the 500 billion yen special reserve fund for public works set aside in the fiscal 1999 budget should be fully utilized, it says.
The Liberal Party's basic policy also states the base portion of the pension fund, as well as nursing and medical costs for the elderly, should be funded by tax revenues.
On national security, the draft proposes enactment of a basic law on Japan's security policy in accordance with the contents of the agreement reached between Liberal Party leader Ichiro Ozawa and Keizo Obuchi, leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, last November.