Next year = The budget request for the national budget for the 4th year of Reiwa is 31 days, which is the deadline for submission from each ministry to the Ministry of Finance.
Against the backdrop of increased costs for social security and redemption of government bonds, the total amount of general account requirements is expected to reach a record high of 110 trillion yen.
Each ministry and agency will submit a budget request to the Ministry of Finance by the 31st to prepare the national budget for next year.
Of these, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, which has the highest demand, demands a record high of 33,945 billion yen.
This is because social security costs such as medical care and long-term care continue to increase with the aging of the population.
In addition, the “government bond costs” for redemption and interest payments of government bonds, which are included in the budget request of the Ministry of Finance, will increase by more than 6 trillion yen from the initial budget for this fiscal year to 30,236.2 billion yen.
The required amount of the "Digital Agency", which will be launched on September 1, is 542.6 billion yen, and will include expenses related to the maintenance and operation of information systems of each ministry and agency.
As a result, the total amount of general account requirements is expected to reach a record high of 110 trillion yen for the fourth consecutive year.
On the other hand, as a countermeasure against infection with the new coronavirus, in addition to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology's project to subsidize the purchase cost of disinfectants used in elementary and junior high schools and high schools, a new organization has been established to strengthen the crisis control system for infectious diseases. The business of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare will be included.
Many businesses do not indicate the amount at the stage of requesting a budget, and as financial management becomes more difficult, it will be asked whether the expansion of the budget plan can be stopped to a certain extent and lead to efficient organization.
Not stand infection convergence prospects, deterioration of ever follow financial
Financial situation of the country, in the prospect of infection convergence of the new coronavirus is not still stand, and getting worse.
Last year = In the second year of Reiwa, the government prepared a supplementary budget three times, and the total amount of the general account, including the initial budget, expanded to an unusual scale of over 175 trillion yen.
Of this amount, more than 60 trillion yen was covered by tax revenue, but the remaining financial resources were supplemented with government bonds, etc., so the amount of new government bonds issued for the first year exceeded 100 trillion yen for the first time.
The initial budget for this fiscal year also relies on government bonds for about 43 trillion yen, which is 40% of the total expenditure of about 106.6 trillion yen.
As a result, the total debt balance of the national and local governments is expected to reach more than 1166 trillion yen at the end of this fiscal year, which is more than double the GDP = gross domestic product.
Many of the new corona countermeasure projects included by each ministry and agency in the budget request for the next fiscal year do not specify the amount because it is difficult to predict the future of the infection situation.
For this reason, there are concerns that the longer the effects of the infection, the higher the expenditure and the worse the financial situation.
Furthermore, as the so-called baby boomer generation turns 75 years old or older, it is expected that social security expenses such as medical care and long-term care will increase further, and the national finances are likely to expand structurally.
Budgeting issues
The second budget request for the initial budget due to the corona wreck.
In organizing, it is more important than ever to revitalize the Japanese economy and allocate the budget more efficiently so as not to accelerate the deterioration of public finances.
As the impact of the new Corona continues for a long time, the government will continue to provide continuous support to individuals and businesses in difficult situations.
In addition, after reducing the policy costs of each ministry and agency by 10%, a special frame called "new growth promotion frame" will be set up for the realization of growth strategies such as decarbonization and digital society, which will lead to a well-balanced budget formulation. I want to.
The government will continue to aim for both "economic revitalization" and "fiscal consolidation", but there is a possibility that there will be more calls for increased spending ahead of the lower house election, and it may be difficult to steer in the future. Expected.
On the other hand, last year, we prepared a budget totaling 175 trillion yen in the general account, but about 30 trillion yen of this budget was carried over to this year without being used.
It has been pointed out that the money may not be sufficiently distributed to individuals and businesses in need of support, and how to quickly execute a huge budget is also an issue.