Latest news with #MyNumberCard
Asahi Shimbun
10-06-2025
- Business
- Asahi Shimbun
LDP, Komeito revive plan for cash handouts as election nears
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, right, president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, meets with Tetsuo Saito, leader of junior coalition partner Komeito, in May. (Asahi Shimbun file photo) Cash handouts versus tax cuts. The ruling coalition and the opposition bloc have settled on differing policies to help the public deal with the rising cost of living, the likely main issue in the Upper House election next month. The Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, Komeito, plan to include the cash handouts in the government's economic measures as well as in their common campaign pledges for the Upper House election, senior government officials said. At a meeting in Tokyo on June 10, the secretaries-general and other officials of the coalition parties decided that their policy research councils will discuss the amount and other details of the proposed benefits. Coalition officials have floated the idea of offering tens of thousands of yen per person without setting income limits, and financing the program with a surplus in fiscal 2024 tax revenues, sources said. The handouts are expected to be provided in cash or through the Myna Point program, which is linked to the government's My Number Card (Individual Number Card) system, to prioritize speedy rollouts, the sources said. The LDP and Komeito had discussed a plan to give about 50,000 yen ($345) per person in cash handouts in April but eventually scrapped the idea after being criticized by the public as engaging in a dole-out policy. Calls for reconsidering the cash benefits grew within the ruling coalition when the opposition parties started promising to reduce the consumption tax rate. LDP leaders have ruled out the possibility of a consumption tax cut as an Upper House election pledge, forcing Komeito to drop the tax reduction from the list of its priority policies. Komeito already listed the provision of 'livelihood support benefits,' which would return increased tax revenues to the public, as one of its priority policies announced on June 6. The Upper House election is expected to be held on July 20, with official campaigning likely to kick off on July 3.
Japan Times
20-05-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Singapore envoy eyes stronger cyber and digital links with Japan
Cybersecurity and digitalization are among five key areas where Japan and Singapore plan to take relations to fresh highs next year as the partners look to step up cooperation on emerging technologies such as quantum computing, according to the city-state's envoy to Tokyo. 'When it comes to cybersecurity, there are so many different areas that you can look at,' Ambassador Ong Eng Chuan said in an interview with The Japan Times ahead of the two countries' 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2026. 'While today is artificial intelligence, tomorrow we're looking at the possibility of quantum technology, taking it a step further,' he said, noting that post-quantum cryptography — the development cryptographic systems designed to be secure against both quantum and classical computers — 'is going to create a whole new set of challenges and opportunities.' Ong said Singapore hopes to 'collaborate closely' with Japan in this area 'because the country is already developing that technical capability. He pointed to the work being done by Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, which is working with Intel on a next-general silicon quantum computer. The ambassador said Japan and Singapore plan to use the 2026 anniversary 'as a benchmark to upgrade our relationship,' noting that the partners also aim to deepen collaboration in the areas of trade and the economy, sustainability and climate change, defense and security and people-to-people exchanges. One important and overlooked area of cooperation is how Singapore, which has a Ministry of Digital Development and Information, is often seen as a model for Tokyo's transition to a digital economy, especially as Japan continues to lag behind others, ranking 31st in an international comparison of digital competitiveness conducted last year. Singapore, which ranked No. 1 in the same survey, has been working for at least a decade to become a "smart nation" by leveraging technology to improve different areas such as government, infrastructure and the economy. That drive is supported by a large contingent of government IT engineers, compared with that of Japan — a country of over 120 million people as opposed to Singapore's 6 million. This includes digitalizing government services, with Singaporeans now using apps such as SingPass or LifeSG that enable them to not only have a digital ID card but also interact with the government electronically and access services such as applying for passports, birth certificates and driver licenses from anywhere. Japan, which has sent teams to examine Singapore's approach, is believed to have taken inspiration from the city-state when it began integrating its health insurance card into the My Number Card last year. 'Japan is a very advanced country when it comes to technology, but it's more in terms of the implementation that I think we can share a little bit of our experience,' Ong said. 'So maybe once there is more collaboration in that area, more examples of successes in Singapore, people may be more open to see the conveniences that such technologies can bring to their lives,' he added. 'And I think once that happens, Japan will be an even more efficient country.'
