The Democratic Party of Japan has announced its manifesto for the Aug. 30 Lower House election. It has two pillars: scheduled measures to directly help households and steps to end bureaucracy-led politics.

To help households, the DPJ proposes a monthly allowance of ¥26,000 for a child up to the middle school age, zero tuition for a public high school student and a minimum ¥70,000 monthly pension; plus a lower tax for smaller corporations, income compensation for farmers, a ¥100,000 monthly allowance for a jobless person in job training, and making expressways toll free.

To secure funds, the DPJ calls for a comprehensive reordering of national budgets totaling ¥207 trillion a year, abolishing wasteful spending, changing the tax system, and using reserve funds in the special account. But there is no guarantee that this approach will work. The manifesto does not discuss the possibility of raising the consumption tax, which might become necessary. It does not mention specific funding sources for the first fiscal year under a DPJ-led government, either.