Kishida vows to achieve economic growth through wealth distribution

Kishida speaks at a plenary session of the House of Representatives on Wednesday. The Yomiuri Shimbun/Asia News Network

TOKYO — “Wealth distribution through pay increases is not a cost, but an investment in the future,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Wednesday, expressing his intention to achieve economic growth through efforts to encourage companies to raise pay.

Kishida made the comments during interpellations by party representatives on the prime minister’s policy speech at a plenary session of the House of Representatives.

He stressed that the “new form of capitalism” he is aiming to bring about “puts [wealth] distribution at the center of the path to growth.”

Kishida said he would strive to raise the income of people by reviewing the official fees that are used as a basis to calculate salaries of nurses, caregivers and nursery staff, and offering tax incentives to companies that raised wages.

“Through wealth distribution, we will create new demand that will support growth,” he said.

Regarding the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, Kishida said, “We must make efforts to involve nuclear weapon states.”

During the teleconference with U.S. President Joe Biden scheduled for Friday, Kishida said he wants to confirm that the leaders will work together “toward a world without nuclear weapons.”