In March 2010, the Democratic Party of Japan government pushed through the Diet a law to exempt tuition for high school students irrespective of their families' annual income. The law was based on the idea that society as a whole should support students, who will build the future Japan, whether they are from rich families or from poor families. Under the system, public high schools do not collect tuition from students and about ¥120,000 is provided annually to each student studying at private high schools — the equivalent of public high school tuition.
But on Aug. 27, the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito, which form the current ruling coalition, agreed to introduce an income cap for the tuition exemption and support system. From April 2014, high school students whose families annually earn ¥9.1 million or more will not be able to receive benefits from the system.
This is a bad decision. It will destroy an education policy that has taken root after three years and is supported by parents and educators. It will also cause trouble for local governments and schools, forcing them to change by-laws and computer programs, and to collect tuition from parents who do not wish to cooperate. It is not far-fetched to say that the two parties just want to change the system because it was a legacy of the DPJ government.