震災復興財源―増税で被災地支えよう

被災地の東北地方に首都圏の機能を移転する。
被災地の広大な敷地を利用してクリーンエネルギーの基地をつくる。
被災地の一部を経済特区にして、海外からも資本を呼び込む。
いろんなアイデアがあります。
今回の災害を肝に銘じ、被災地はアボイドマップに登録して、跡地利用を考える。
１０００年に一度でも、一発でああなります。
やはり、アボイドマップに登録すべきでしょう。
（スラチャイ）

--The Asahi Shimbun, June 10
EDITORIAL: All generations must chip in to rebuild Tohoku region
震災復興財源―増税で被災地支えよう

The compilation of the second supplementary budget to reconstruct stricken areas of the Great East Japan Earthquake is attracting attention.
　東日本大震災の被災地の復興に向けて、第２次補正予算の編成が焦点となっている。

The approximately 4 trillion yen ($50 billion) first supplementary budget somehow came up with funding through a re-examination of this fiscal year's initial budget.
約４兆円の１次補正では今年度当初予算の見直しなどで財源をひねり出したが、

But issuance of additional government bonds appears to be unavoidable in the second supplementary budget, whose amount is larger.
より大規模になる２次補正では国債の追加発行が避けられない情勢だ。

How can the government secure funds to repay the bonds once they are issued?
　国債を発行した後、その返済財源をどう確保するか。

The Reconstruction Design Council in Response to the Great East Japan Earthquake, an advisory panel to the government, recommended a tax increase in its draft for the first proposal to be released at the end of the month.
政府の復興構想会議は、今月末に発表する第１次提言の骨子案に、増税でまかなうべきだという考えを盛り込んだ。

Japan's public finance is in dire straits with overall debt 1.8 times its gross domestic product.
　わが国の財政は、国債発行残高が国内総生産を上回り、国の借金全体では１．８倍に達するなど、極めて厳しい状況にある。

The situation is prompting moves among foreign credit-rating agencies to lower the ratings of Japanese government bonds.
海外の格付け会社は日本国債の格下げに動いている。

It is imperative that the government make arrangements to repay reconstruction funds within a set period without passing on the bill to future generations.
　復興資金まで将来世代につけ回しすることなく、一定期間で返す段取りをつけることが必要だ。

Policymakers of the Democratic Party of Japan, the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito agreed at the time of compiling the first supplementary budget at the end of April to manage government bonds for reconstruction separately from ordinary ones and to ensure their sale and redemption.
民主、自民、公明３党の政策責任者も、４月末の１次補正編成の際、「復興のための国債は、従来の国債と区別して管理し、その消化や償還を担保する」と合意している。

We support the panel's stance.
復興構想会議の姿勢を支持したい。

Some people say the Bank of Japan should buy the bonds, but such an idea could cause many overseas investors to think that Japanese finance is getting out of control and trigger the value of government bonds to nosedive.
　「国債を日本銀行に引き受けさせればよい」との主張がくすぶるが、海外を中心とする投資家から「日本の財政のタガが外れた」と受け取られ、国債急落の引き金になりかねない。

It is indeed a dangerous idea.
危険な考えと言わざるをえない。

Income, corporate and consumption taxes, whose revenues are high, are candidates for tax increases.
　税収が多い所得税や法人税、消費税などが増税の候補だろう。

How should they be combined to come up with needed funds and when and for how many years should the taxes be raised?
どう組みあわせるか、いつから何年程度増税するか。

In addition to paying attention to the economy, the government must address many problems, such as whether residents and companies of the stricken areas should be required to bear the new tax burden.
景気への配慮に加え、被災地の住民や企業にも負担増を求めるかどうかなど、検討課題は多い。

To alleviate tax burdens as much as possible, new systems to promote the flow of private funds to the stricken areas must not be forgotten, either.
　税の負担を少しでも減らすため、民間の資金が被災地に流れる仕組みを整えることも忘れてはならない。

There are budding moves to introduce a special zone designed to encourage businesses to enter the fisheries industry, a proposal announced by the Miyagi prefectural government.
宮城県が漁業への企業の参入を促す特区構想を発表するなど、種はある。

Reforms of both the taxation and social security systems have been discussed in parallel with rebuilding from the disaster.
The government has come up with proposals "to secure consumption tax revenues as a major source based on the viewpoint to have all generations broadly and fairly share the burden" and "to raise the consumption tax rate in phases to 10 percent by fiscal 2015" based on an increase of social security spending in response to the aging society and a goal for restoring fiscal health.
　震災復興と並行し、政府は税と社会保障の一体改革論議で、高齢化に伴う社会保障費の増加や財政再建目標を踏まえて、「費用をあらゆる世代が広く公平に分かち合う観点から、消費税収を主要な財源として確保する」「２０１５年度までに段階的に消費税率を１０％まで引き上げる」との案をまとめた。

How to secure revenues for reconstruction will be studied by taking into consideration such ideas as well.
　震災復興の財源は、こうした方針も考慮に入れて、検討することになる。

We must support the stricken areas with older and younger generations helping each other.
　被災地を支援し、世代間で助け合う。

The burden associated with these two types of mutual support is by no means small.
二つの「支え合い」に伴う負担は、決して軽くない。

But we cannot afford to procrastinate.
しかし、先送りはもはや許されない。

Along with making an effort to eliminate administrative waste and to try to increase tax revenues by invigorating the Japanese economy, this is a challenge we need to tackle squarely without putting it off any further.
行政のむだをなくす努力、日本経済を活発にして税収自体を増やす努力とともに、逃げずに取り組んでいかねばならない。