Draft measures drawn up by the government to deal with the nation's declining birthrate have been criticized by opposition parties, with one leading politician calling it a "pork-barreling" plan. The measures, drafted with an eye on upcoming nationwide local elections and five by-elections for both houses of the Diet, were released Friday.
The proposals include a string of potentially budget-guzzling measures, such as the expansion of the child allowance, but it is unclear to what extent the plans will be implemented or where the funding would come from.
On Friday evening, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met with Koichi Hagiuda -- chair of the Liberal Democratic Party's Policy Research Council -- at the Prime Minister's Office and instructed him to accelerate discussions within the party to realize the steps, which include augmenting the child allowance, support for childbirth expenses, and housing assistance.
