The government is looking to make legal changes to allow special road-building revenue to be used for alternative purposes, Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Wednesday.
At a session of the House of Representatives Financial Affairs Committee, he said the revisions may turn part of the special revenue into general revenue after the current five-year road construction program ends in March 2003.
The remarks reflect Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's plan to diversify the use of the special revenue as part of efforts to bring the nation's debt-ridden state finances back into line over the medium to long term. But the attempt could incur strong resistance from construction industry-backed lawmakers of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, who have long monopolized the money in pork-barrel politics.