At a meeting of the Upper House Budget Committee on March 28, Ishiba said that he had “no intention of categorically denying” the possibility of cutting the consumption tax. But on April 1, he retracted the remark, saying that a tax cut is “not appropriate.”
However, he hinted at a possible tax cut again on April 5, saying in a television program that he would hold talks with party colleagues on the matter. According to informed sources, Moriyama secretly visited the prime minister’s official residence on Tuesday night and pushed for a cash handout. Ishiba agreed to Moriyama’s proposal at the time.
Still, a senior government official said that the prime minister has not yet taken sides and will make a final decision after examining related developments within the LDP and trends in public opinion.
The possible cash handout and tax cut are the same in that both would cost several trillion yen.
Keiichiro Kobayashi, a professor at Keio University who specializes in macroeconomics, said that a cash handout or tax cut should not be implemented before the economic impact of US tariffs becomes clearer.
“I think they should first consider measures such as loans to help small firms with financing,” Kobayashi said.
[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
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