The government should revise its definition of "the working population" and aim to have working environments where people of all ages, especially the elderly, can work flexibly, a policy subcommittee of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party proposed Wednesday.

In its statistics, the government currently defines "the working population" as those aged 15 to 64. Most Japanese companies likewise set the compulsory retirement age at 65 or younger.

But according to the subcommittee's 13-page report, this assumption should be changed so that more elderly people can continue working to support the country's economy and social security system.

Accordingly, the government should expand its definition of the working population to include people aged 18 to 74, the subcommittee argued.

The report has drawn much media attention partly because the director-general of the subcommittee is Shinjiro Koizumi, a son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. The young Koizumi is now considered one of the most hopeful candidates for a future prime minister.

The subcommittee also proposed that the government should more precisely track down assets and incomes of individuals, and ask for social security burdens based on their financial conditions, not simply based on their age.

During a news conference, Koizumi argued that the new definition of the working population would fit the reality of today's elderly people in Japan, who are healthier than those of the same age who lived in the past.

"We have started our discussion by questioning if the age range of the working population really fits the reality," Koizumi said.

The report called for a flexible working environment where people of both sexes and all ages can work based on their conditions of their lives.

The report did not, however, discuss what specific policy measures should be taken to realize that goal.

Koizumi said forming consensus on an ideal future society among 20 subcommittee members was the priority.

Many experts argue, given the rapidly aging population with fewer children, that Japan's working population will dwindle and be unable to sustain economic growth.

To utilize more of the nation's workforce, in particular women and elderly people, Japan would need more flexible working environments, they say.