================================================================================================== The 2023 Election Pledge of the Ice Party, a political party for the employment ice age generation ================================================================================================== :author: Akihiro Kuroiwa :date: 2023/04/10 :abstract: "The Party of the Lost Generation" is known as "The Ice Party" in Japan, as the "Lost Generation" is referred to as the "employment ice age generation". As one of the founders of the Ice Party, I am writing this manifesto. In Japan, the policy of "employment mobility" by Mr. Heizo Takenaka has led to an increase in non-regular employment and forced more people to live unstable lives. Furthermore, there is a strong trend of valuing seniority of employers, and due to the extreme practice of emphasizing work experience, those who were not recruited as new graduates have had difficulty finding employment or have not been fairly evaluated for their abilities. The purpose of our founding is to improve this situation and revise the law so that future young generations will not suffer the same fate. As representatives of the people, members of the National Diet value international cooperation and prefer those without discriminatory attitudes. In addition, they require policy-making abilities for problem-solving. In this age of widespread internet usage, we must use `social media to deepen discussions `__ and send capable representatives who possess such abilities to the National Diet. The Ice Party's 2023 election platform mainly focuses on SDGs, particularly environmental and labor issues, and is based on the introduction of Pigouvian taxes. It is in line with the economic policies I wrote about in the `Silent Genocide `__ of 2021. Here is our 2023 election platform. Those who agree with the founding purpose and this platform are invited to join as members or candidates, regardless of age or gender. If you agree with our purpose, you can establish a branch of the Ice Party in any country or region. Notification of the party formation will be made immediately if there is more than one candidate. Employment Measures =================== Increasing stable employment and addressing the declining birthrate issue ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Employment measures for the "employment ice age generation" can also serve as measures for the declining birthrate issue. As mentioned earlier, recurrent education and reskilling are necessary for job seekers and companies that require new skills. We must evaluate abilities based on concrete and objective standards, rather than vague and unfounded employment and promotion standards based on seniority, and regulate them. Introduction of Pigouvian Taxes ------------------------------- We will consider regulating or even banning temporary staffing agencies to prevent forced non-regular employment. As mentioned earlier, we will introduce Pigouvian taxes to encourage employers to convert non-regular employees into regular employees. Simplification and Cost Reduction of Entrepreneurship ----------------------------------------------------- Cloud services provide online support for document preparation, which is essential for entrepreneurship, but this should be a responsibility of the government. We should make it easy and inexpensive to start a business, similar to what is possible in New Zealand. Prohibition of Forced Collection Other Than Taxes ------------------------------------------------- We will not allow forced collection other than taxes, such as social insurance premiums and national pensions. It is difficult for low-income households to bear these costs, especially in the current environment where the wealth gap is widening, and the government budget should cover them. In addition, we will stop collecting NHK reception fees and provide support from the government budget. We will also promote partial privatization, such as advertising placement, and enhance internet streaming services while securing revenue sources that do not rely on reception fees. Industrial Promotion Policy =========================== Implementing Pigouvian Tax to Achieve SDGs ------------------------------------------ Pigouvian tax in environmental economics is considered a means to achieve SDGs, and corporate contributions will determine the corporate tax rate and tariff. Specifically, companies certified by organizations designated by the government as SDGs certification bodies receive preferential corporate tax rates. Public Projects Funded by Market Procurement -------------------------------------------- Funding will be procured from the market through the issuance of ETFs, REITs, and other means without relying on government budgets. - Prioritize repairs. - Develop central core cities and alleviate overconcentration in Tokyo. - Develop core cities as agricultural corporate bases. - Encourage the formation of power-to-gas consortia and actively adopt them in public projects. - Support the development and commercialization of printable circuits. - Mandate the development of government expenditure system development software as open-source. - Replace the Individual Number Card with biometric authentication. - Regulate lobbyists such as the Japan Medical Association and Nippon Keidanren. - Abolish the family doctor system and lift the ban on companies entering hospital management. To achieve the third goal, we will improve employment training for the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries and increase the number of people who migrate to rural areas. In addition, the government and local governments will act as intermediaries in leasing farmland to individuals and agricultural corporations who want to start farming. The fourth goal will be spread throughout the country as Japan's version of the Green New Deal. For the sixth goal, the government will mandate that software developed with taxpayer money and commissioned for development must be developed as open-source. The government will actively utilize open-source and pay developers and projects the appropriate compensation. We will support companies that adopt open source as a strategy, like major American IT companies. Foreign Policy ============== Cooperation between Japan and South Korea is essential for security in East Asia, and it is desirable to maintain friendly relations with South Korea. As the number of people who know about the prewar period decreases and the postwar generation becomes the majority, parliamentarians born after the war need to accurately understand the actual situation of prewar colonial rule and the history of postwar reparations. This also applies to the members of the National Assembly of South Korea. To achieve this, people who have knowledge of the history of post-war reparations should be invited to a committee set up in the Diet and asked to testify. The results of the investigation should then be used as the government's official opinion.