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On August 23, 2021, the Prime Minister attended the 11th meeting of the Council for Promotion of Regulatory Reform at the Prime Minister’s Office.

At the meeting, there was a mutual election of the Chair and an appointment of the Acting Chair, followed by discussions on the future proceedings of the Council for Promotion of Regulatory Reform, the major outcomes of regulatory reforms, and challenges for the time being.

Following the discussion, the Prime Minister said,
 
 “We have started discussions in the Council for Promotion of Regulatory Reform under a new structure with Chair Natsuno and Acting Chair Ootsuki, who were elected and appointed respectively today. I would like to request the members of the council to hold vigorous discussions in the future.
 
Regulatory reform is one of the important priorities of my Cabinet. Considering the ideal form of regulations from the people’s standpoint without falling into the notorious habit of following past precedent as well as reviewing regulations that need reforms to open up a path for future growth – with these in mind, we have tackled regulatory reform since I assumed office as Prime Minister.
 
We have pushed ahead with thorough reforms of administrative procedures thus fur, based on the idea that administrative procedures must not hinder economic activities. As a result, we have realized the formulation of a plan to make 98 percent of procedures involving written forms available online and the abolishment of the requirements to apply physical seals in 99 percent of procedures. We will further proceed with reforms aimed at increasing convenience for the people, including significantly raising the utilization rate of online procedures and introducing cashless payments at the counter.
 
In addition, toward the post-COVID-19 era, we will advance fearless regulatory reforms centered on the priority areas such as green, digital, creating vibrant communities, and children and child-rearing, including relaxing restrictions on the connection of renewable energy generators with power grids, accelerating the use of online consultations, and realizing flexible fundraising by agricultural ventures. By doing so, we can draw out bold ideas and innovation from the private sector, thereby creating a powerful growth.
 
We believe that it is essential that we steadily implement necessary reforms one after another without getting caught up in bureaucratic sectionalism and that we enable each person to feel those changes in a tangible way.
 
I sincerely ask for an interim compilation of outcomes by this council within this year and request tackling regulatory reforms with a sense of speed, under the leadership of Minister Kono.”