ＴＰＰ総合対策 農業以外への目配りも大切だ

The Yomiuri Shimbun
TPP task force should not limit itself to agricultural protection
ＴＰＰ総合対策　農業以外への目配りも大切だ

We hope the government’s newly established TPP task force will not disappoint by coming up with measures focusing only on agricultural protection. It is essential that it consider how to utilize the vast, envisioned free-trade area to develop our economy.
　単なる農業保護策では困る。巨大な自由貿易圏を活用し、経済を成長させる視点が大切だ。

The government recently established the task force, which includes all Cabinet ministers, following a broad agreement on the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal. It plans to compile a policy outline by year-end that includes measures to reinforce agriculture.
　環太平洋経済連携協定（ＴＰＰ）交渉の大筋合意を踏まえ、政府は、全閣僚で構成するＴＰＰ総合対策本部を設置した。年内にも、農業強化などの政策大綱を策定する。

When the TPP takes effect, more than 400 tariffs on agricultural, forestry and fishery products will gradually be abolished or reduced. On the one hand, consumers will benefit from increased imports of cheaper foreign products; but on the other, it is unavoidable that domestic farmers will be dealt a blow.
　ＴＰＰが発効すると、４００を超える農林水産物の関税が順次、引き下げ・撤廃される。安い外国産品の輸入が増え、消費者は恩恵を受ける一方、国内農家に打撃が及ぶのは避けられない。

Thus, it is understandable for the government to take certain measures to support agriculture and mitigate any negative impacts on farmers.
　影響を緩和するため、一定の農業支援を行うのは理解できる。

However, the key to agricultural protection does not lie in a surging agricultural budget. What is important is to enhance the productivity of farmers and create an environment that helps them survive international competition.
　肝心なのは、農業予算を大幅に増やすことではない。農家の生産性を高め、国際競争を勝ち抜く環境を創り出すことだ。

In this sense, a recent remark by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was appropriate. “We’ll make the TPP deal a chance for [Japan’s] agriculture to shift to the offensive,” he said.
　安倍首相が「ＴＰＰを『攻めの農業』に切り替えるチャンスにする」と述べたのは適切である。

The government has spent ¥6 trillion to cope with the partial opening of its rice market following the 1993 Uruguay Round trade agreement. However, experts believe the measure had little effect because most of the money was used for measures such as agriculture public works.
　１９９３年のウルグアイ・ラウンド合意では、コメ市場の部分開放に備えて６兆円を投じたが、大半は農業土木事業などに流れ、効果は乏しかったとされる。

Some members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party insist the government spend more than ¥6 trillion on measures to support agriculture. Such demands for the government to raise its expenditure are expected to increase because next summer’s House of Councillors election is looming. We must remain vigilant.
　自民党内では、６兆円を上回る対策を求める声が出ている。来年夏の参院選向けに、歳出圧力が高まることに警戒が怠れない。

Avoid excessive support

A point of concern is the government’s move to overly support farmers.
　気がかりなのは、政府がコメ農家への支援策を必要以上に手厚くしようとしていることだ。

Japan will establish tariff-free import quotas for rice from the United States and Australia totaling nearly 80,000 tons. This is not a big amount — it is equivalent to about 1 percent of the rice produced in Japan — but the government said it will increase the volume of domestic rice it buys up as emergency stock, citing the possibility of those quotas causing the price of the nation’s rice to drop.
　日本は、米国と豪州向けに計８万トン弱のコメの無関税輸入枠を新設する。国内生産量の約１％分に過ぎないのに、政府は、米価下落を招きかねないとして、備蓄米の買い上げ量を積み増すという。

We want to remind the government that bullish measures aimed at maintaining the price of domestic rice will not only increase its financial burden but also diminish the consumer benefits of the free trade agreement.
　強引な米価維持策は、財政負担を膨らませるうえ、消費者のメリットを小さくしてしまおう。

After the deal takes effect, the United States will expand its tariff-free import quotas for Japanese beef. There are measures that could help promote domestic beef, such as utilizing information technology to improve the quality of the meat, as well as enlarging foreign markets.
　ＴＰＰ発効後、米国は日本産牛肉の無関税輸入枠を広げる。和牛を売り込むため、情報技術（ＩＴ）活用による肉質の向上や、海外の販路拡大の対策を講じたい。

It is also essential to pay attention to areas other than agriculture.
　農業以外の分野にも目配りが欠かせない。

The task force has set a policy of using the TPP as a catalyst for promoting technological innovation and creating new industries. We urge the government to increase its efforts for product development based on the needs of importing countries, and also utilize advanced technologies to enhance the competitiveness of Japanese products.
　対策本部は、ＴＰＰをテコに、技術革新の促進や新産業の創出に取り組む方針を掲げた。輸出先のニーズを踏まえた製品開発や、先端技術を応用した競争力の強化に力を入れることが重要だ。

The TPP agreement encompasses deals such as the removal of tariffs on most industrial goods and deregulation of trade and investment, as well as establishing rules for settling disputes. We hope this helps reduce the risks for small and medium-sized companies advancing into emerging nations.
　協定には、工業製品の関税撤廃や、貿易・投資の規制緩和、紛争処理ルールが含まれる。中小企業が新興国に進出するリスクを減らす効果が期待される。

The government should back up ambitious small and medium-sized companies by helping them establish regional supply chains and providing information on foreign markets.
　域内サプライチェーン（供給網）の構築支援や、外国市場に関する情報提供などを通じ、意欲的な中小企業を後押しすべきだ。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 10, 2015)