Kamei says has no plan to change postal reform outline+

TOKYO, March 26 Kyodo -
Postal reform minister Shizuka Kamei said Friday he has no intention to modify
his proposal to revamp Japan Post despite days of contention among members of
the government over the issue, which could deal a blow to the already frayed
Cabinet ahead of the summer House of Councillors election.

The outspoken Kamei, who is also in charge of financial affairs, said at a news
conference he has obtained approval from Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama for the
proposal, which aims to scale back the ongoing privatization process for the
Japan Post group.
''So, it's impossible to drop the whole process,'' including the proposal for
the government to retain a third or more of its shares in state-run Japan Post
Holdings Co. and to double the cap on deposits at its banking unit, Japan Post
Bank Co., he said.
The outline unveiled by Kamei on Wednesday has drawn fierce opposition from
some Cabinet members including national policy minister Yoshito Sengoku.
It has even sparked a dispute between Kamei and Hatoyama over what had been
discussed in connection with the postal reform plan.
Speaking a news conference later Friday, Hatoyama said the figures that have
been made public by Kamei must be respected, while reiterating that his
proposal has not gained Cabinet approval.
He said he suggested in an informal Cabinet meeting earlier in the day that a
meeting be held on postal reforms, possibly Tuesday, among all Cabinet members,
where he said he will seek to draw a conclusion.
But Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirofumi Hirano said at a news conference it is
unlikely the core elements of Kamei's plan will be changed at such a meeting or
on any other occasion.
On Friday, Sengoku expressed caution again over the proposed increase in the
deposit ceiling.
''If we raise the ceiling without any discussions on how to manage the
collected funds, the money would allow it (Japan Post) to buy a hefty amount of
government bonds,'' he said.
Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Masayuki Naoshima said, ''It would help
the issue appear more understandable if we hold solid discussions on how to use
funds, for example, whether to allocate the money to revitalize local
economies.''
Hatoyama has said it is ''healthy'' that each Cabinet member voices a different
opinion if it is before Cabinet endorsement, claiming ministers under the
previous Liberal Democratic Party-led governments were quiet because they left
their work to bureaucrats and were not aware of what they did.
Kamei, who leads the People's New Party, one of the DPJ's two coalition
partners, said Friday he still plans to have a related bill endorsed by the
Cabinet around mid-April for Diet passage and enactment into law in June.
He has proposed doubling the ceiling of deposits at Japan Post Bank to 20
million yen per person and raising the life insurance coverage ceiling at Japan
Post Insurance Co. to 25 million yen from 13 million yen.
==Kyodo
2010-03-27 01:44:45


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