TOKYO : Japan's combined budget requests from government ministries for next fiscal year topped a record US$1 trillion as spending to combat the COVID-19 crisis adds to huge debt-servicing and welfare costs for an ageing society, the finance ministry said.
Of the requested amount at 111.7 trillion yen , debt-servicing made up more than 30 trillion yen to finance Japan's public debt which, at more than double the size of its economy, is the biggest among advanced economies. The request for welfare spending accounted for 34 trillion yen, also a record. The environment ministry requested some 400 billion yen, up 32per cent from the current year's budget and including steps to help meet Japan's pledge to achieve carbon-neutrality in 2050, including subsidies to back renewable energy and carbon pricing.
The requests will be scrutinised by the finance ministry, which usually draft the next fiscal year's budget in December.