July 25, 2026

Akahata editorial (excerpts)

The basic policy on economic and fiscal management for 2026 (known as the “big-boned policy”) and “Japan’s growth strategy”, which were approved by the Cabinet of the government led by Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae on July 21, are extremely outrageous in two respects.

One is the unprecedented direct support for large corporations.

Unlike successive Liberal Democratic Party governments, which supported big businesses mainly with tax cuts such as lowering the corporate tax rate, the Takaichi government in its growth strategy plans to invest over 370 trillion yen by fiscal 2040 through public-private partnerships involving 62 products and technologies across 17 strategic sectors.

The other is the shift toward a military-oriented economy that tramples on both the Constitution and people’s livelihoods.

The “big-bone policy” specifies that the three key national security documents will be revised to dramatically “transform Japan’s defense capabilities within five years”. This represents the government’s intent to push ahead with an increase in military spending to 3.5% of GDP as demanded by the U.S. Trump administration.

The policy identifies the defense industry as a strategic sector for public-private investment. The lineup of weapons manufacturing projects to be invested includes the mass production of small unmanned aerial vehicles and the development of unmanned surface vessels and submarines. The document even proposes building state-owned factories for the production of weapons. “Crisis management investment” will be given top priority alongside “growth investment”.

Economic growth is impossible in a war that brings nothing but destruction. It should be remembered that Japan in the past hit rock bottom with “total war” in which it mobilized all of economic power for wars of aggression.

Corporate welfare and lavish military spending will inevitably result in a financial crisis.

At a time when the draft “big-bone policy” was published, government bonds were sold off in the financial markets, causing a rise in long-term interest rates. In addition, the yen dropped further against the dollar. This shows a decline in confidence in Japan’s finance. Rising interest rates on government bonds increase the government’s interest payments, squeezing public spending in various fields, including social security. The financial deterioration is not a problem to be addressed in the future, but is an ongoing issue.

The Takaichi government’s “big-bone policy” and growth strategy can only be described as policies of national ruin. The Japanese Communist Party will work hard to increase public opposition to such policies.