The Democratic Party of Japan presents a counterproposal of resident tax reduction to Prime Minister Takaichi's consumption tax reduction bill, revealing a conflict with the administration.

The Democratic Party of Japan is poised to come up with a counterproposal regarding the consumption tax reduction bill that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is hoping to pass at an extraordinary Diet session scheduled for October 5th. The main focus is the reduction in resident tax. However, the distance between the two sides has widened, and it is unclear whether the method of obtaining "results" through negotiations with the government will work.

Mr. Onodera, chairman of the Liberal Democratic Tax Commission, continues as chairman and is in charge of consumption tax reduction

"I would like to present a permanent policy that will reduce the burden on the middle class." Representative Yuichiro Tamaki told reporters in Sapporo on the 26th.

The Takaichi administration plans to lower the consumption tax rate on food products to 1% for two years starting April 2027. The plan is to use the remaining 1% to achieve ``virtually zero'' benefits by introducing a system to provide benefits to middle- and low-income workers according to their income, and to implement the system in earnest after the tax reduction period ends.

However, if the tax rate returns to the current 8%, it will impose a heavy burden on those who are not eligible for income-linked benefits.

Based on this, Mr. Tamaki criticized the government's proposal as a ``significant tax increase on the middle class.'' The plan is to focus on raising the amount of deductions for resident taxes as a countermeasure. It will also seek joint action with other opposition parties.

The ruling party has an overwhelming majority in the House of Representatives, but a narrow majority in the House of Councilors. Cooperation from opposition parties is needed to smoothly pass the consumption tax reduction bill. Shunichi Suzuki, secretary-general of the Liberal Democratic Party, which emphasizes cooperation with the Democratic Party of the People, said, ``We want to continue building a relationship of trust.''

However, the Prime Minister did not respond to Mr. Tamaki's insistence on a change in policy, saying that his ``fervent wish'' was to reduce the consumption tax. Regarding the reduction in the number of members of the House of Representatives, Mr. Tamaki, who remains in opposition, is at odds with the prime minister, who aims to pass related legislation in an extraordinary session of the Diet.

The government's proposal and the counter-proposal have different basic tax items, and there is little room for compromise between the two. One NDP lawmaker said, ``I don't think the prime minister would consider him a negotiating partner.''