Governor Koike Attends Consultative Meeting Between National and Tokyo Metropolitan Govts

On April 10, Governor Koike attended a consultative meeting between the national government and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government held at the Prime Minister’s Office.

During the meeting, Governor Koike said, “In January, Prime Minister Takaichi proposed that the national government and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government work together to foster growth of both Japan and Tokyo, and this meeting has been so arranged that we can exchange views on key issues.

The governor then pointed out, “The global situation has been extremely uncertain. Securing energy and various other resources can be considered as an Achilles’ heel for our country. Now is indeed an extremely crucial time for both the nation and the megacity Tokyo. The digital sector is also undergoing rapid and continuous changes. Regarding demographic structure, a major factor for our country and quite a difficult issue, Tokyo has managed to turn the birth rate positive for the first time in 10 years.”

She went on to say, “Regarding digital transformation, our offices led by Vice Governor Miyasaka Manabu, have been pushing the DX forward while leading the whole country in this respect and advancing cooperation with other local governments. And if our discussions were brought to such an extent as to take up structural issues that would take advantage of Tokyo’s strength in Japan as it stands now, we might eventually discuss concrete matters, including deciding on what is to be allocated and where or in which areas. I have such a sense of urgency that unless we change the present structure, we might not be able to keep up with the world, let alone manage to take the lead.

“Regarding what the local tax and finances should be like in the future, I believe the system we have seen over the past several years, which is essentially aimed at deciding how to divide a limited pie, will no longer be viable when we consider future development. To expand the pie and achieve sustainable growth, I strongly hope we will hold constructive discussions repeatedly at this meeting. For the sake of Japan’s growth and making Japan stronger and more prosperous, Tokyo is committed to working hard and pushing discussions forward in close cooperation with the national government,” she emphasized.