午夜剧场

Japan is currently a nation with more debt than ever before in its history. It's not just the national government; the debt of local governments has also become severe, and the de facto bankruptcy of Yubari City in 2006 is still fresh in our minds.

So why did this situation come about? Looking back at the past, it was in the 1990s that the debt of local governments began to swell significantly. A major factor was public works projects. When the bubble burst and the economy slowed down in the 90s, the national government, in line with its policy, decided to undertake large-scale public works projects with local governments as an economic stimulus measure. However, public works require money, and as the economy receded, both the national and local governments saw their tax revenues decrease, leading to a shortage of financial resources. The main source of funding for these public works became local government bonds. To carry out these projects, they accumulated debt in the form of local bonds. By the time they realized it, the amount had ballooned to an enormous sum.

Subsequently, as many municipalities across Japan were driven into critical situations, the Koizumi administration promoted the "Trinity Reform." This was a reform of the three main revenue sources for local governments, and while the direction itself was not wrong, this reform did not include "local government bonds."

What can be done to prevent a second or third Yubari City? Wondering if it was possible to save local governments trapped in a quagmire of debt with the knowledge of economics, I began my research on local government bonds. The result of investigating and analyzing the causes from an economic perspective and compiling solutions is my book, "The Economics of Local Bond Reform" (published by Nikkei Inc.).

In my book, I advocated that "local governments should provide public services that are within their means." To put this into practice, it is essential for them to exercise their own capabilities without relying on subsidies from the national government, which often requires patience and endurance. For this reason, there were some dissenting voices claiming that my proposal was "too harsh on local regions." However, my work was academically recognized, receiving the Japan Economic Book and Culture Award (2007) and the Suntory Prize for Social Sciences and Humanities (2007), and furthermore, I was honored with the 午夜剧场 Award (2007). Receiving these awards is a sign that my stance of analyzing calmly and logically, without being swayed by emotion, has been appreciated. The 午夜剧场 Award, in particular, has become a great encouragement for me to continue my research.

My interest in economics began when I was in high school. It was around the time the consumption tax was introduced, and whenever I heard opinions against it through newspapers and other media, I felt they were emotional and lacked persuasiveness. Amidst this, a story by an economist about the economic effects of the consumption tax was so convincing that it made me say, "I see." I had always liked both politics and economics and was unsure which path to take, but I decided my course when I realized I wanted to study "public finance," which deals with both in a composite manner, in the Faculty of Economics. Since then, I have been researching areas related to public finance. Economics is not a field of study where you can obtain some kind of qualification just by learning it. However, from the perspective of "cultivating a way of thinking," it is a particularly excellent discipline among the social sciences. When students go out into the world and become members of society, I want them to become "sharp adults" who can perceive things calmly, have their own principles, and express their opinions without wavering. To that end, I intend to continue providing them with more and more opportunities to cultivate their ability to think for themselves.

On a side note, the Faculty of Economics has an inter-seminar softball tournament, and I sometimes step up to the batter's box. Every year, the "Shiozawa Seminar," led by Dean Shiozawa, takes the championship. This year, with the clear goal of "Defeat the Shiozawa Seminar," we fought as one and, in our sixth year, finally made it to the final tournament, achieving good results with a third-place finish in the spring tournament and second place in the fall tournament. Incidentally, in our game against the Shiozawa Seminar, we took the lead at one point but ultimately lost in a comeback. To avenge this humiliation, I plan to take on the challenge again next year with my seminar students. It's a wonderful thing to have places for interaction between students and faculty outside of the learning environment, isn't it? I want to make even greater efforts to create an environment where we can get closer to each other and feel free to express our opinions.

(Interview conducted on October 22, 2008)