More than half the public supports the idea of the social security burden being shouldered by all generations — the working population as well as the elderly, according to a government survey released Tuesday.
A total of 51.9 percent of the respondents are receptive to sharing the burden at a time when costs are growing amid the aging of the population, although criticism remains that younger people won't be able to enjoy the same level of pension and medical benefits as the current elderly population.
The results of the online survey, conducted from Feb. 28 to March 1 with 3,144 adults responding nationwide, were incorporated in a government white paper submitted to the Cabinet by Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Yoko Komiyama.