In order to strengthen measures to address the declining birthrate, the New Komeito Party recommended to Prime Minister Kishida that the government declare a state of emergency and concentrate on measures such as the expansion of child allowance over the next three years.
Ahead of the government's efforts to address the declining birthrate as early as this week, the New Komeito Party handed over its proposals to Prime Minister Kishida at the Prime Minister's Office by Takagi, Chairman of the Political Research Committee.
The proposal points out that the current situation of the declining birthrate is "on the verge of whether or not social functions can be maintained," proposes the issuance of a "state of emergency," and emphasizes the need for efforts to completely change the awareness of society as a whole.
Positioning the next three years as an "intensive period," the bill calls for raising the age for child allowance to 3, removing income restrictions, and prioritizing the removal of income restrictions and the addition of allowances to households with many children.
In addition, it recommends that we aim to expand the provision of free medical expenses up to the third year of high school, higher education such as high school and university, and school lunches.
In addition, we are calling for efforts to enable employees to take childcare leave regardless of their employment status and to reduce the burden of returning scholarships.
In response, Prime Minister Kishida replied, "I would like to take this seriously and make efforts to reflect it in the starting point."
After the meeting, Mr. Takagi told reporters, "Child-rearing support has an image of early childhood, but it is a long-term issue until adulthood, and I would like the government to give the whole picture."