The government has picked Sept. 1 as the start date of the Consumer Agency — two days after the Lower House election — by moving up the original schedule. Whichever political party comes to power, the new agency will face many difficult problems.
Strengthening of consumer service centers is urgent because they play an important role in collecting information on problems consumers have encountered. At present, there are 586 such centers at the prefectural and municipal levels. The government's goal is for each municipality with a population of 50,000 or more to have at least one consumer service center.
The Cabinet Office says that while there are 562 such municipalities, only 348 of them have such centers. Therefore more than 200 new centers must be established. The central government has secured about ¥26 billion to set up new centers and pay for salaries of consumer life counselors. Because the centers' operation is under the jurisdiction of local governments, the central government's policy does not automatically lead to an increase in the number of centers.