Focusing on social security, the proposal faces resistance in Parliament and needs support from the opposition to be sanctioned
The cabinet of the Japanese Prime Minister, Shigeru Ishiba (Liberal Democratic Party, right), approved this Friday (Dec 27, 2024) a budget of 115.5 trillion of yen (about US$732.36 billion) for the fiscal year starting in 2025, marking a 2.6% increase over the previous budget. The budget’s main objective is to cover rising social security and defense spending.
The budget, which will come into force from April, was designed to address the economic challenges of one of the world’s largest economies. One of the main points is the limitation of the issuance of new debt securities to 28.6 trillion yen, the lowest amount in 17 years.
This will cause debt dependence to fall to 24.8%, the first time that this index has been below 30% since 1998. The information is from the agency .
But the budget plan could face difficulties in Parliament as the Ishiba-led coalition needs the support of opposition parties to pass it after losing its majority in October elections.
The government faces resistance, especially from the DPP (People’s Democratic Party), which demands a more significant increase in the income tax exemption limit.
