Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the sixth meeting of the Administrative Reform Promotion Council at the Prime Minister's Office.

During the meeting, an exchange of views took place on the review of administrative programs and the holding of a meeting of the Advisory Panel on the Modalities of Government and Administration.

The Prime Minister said in his address,

"In advancing administrative reform, it is critically important that waste is eliminated.
The Government as a whole must make renewed and thorough efforts to ensure that it will not be criticized for using tax money, which is paid by the people, on wasteful expenditures or on measures that are of low priority.
In light of the opinions received today, in order to conduct a rigorous check of the initiatives of each ministry and aim to enhance the program content under the framework of this Administrative Reform Promotion Council, we hope to hold an 'Autumn Review' next week with the participation of distinguished external experts. We will make full use of the outcome of the review in formulating the budget at the end of the year and ensuring the improvement of the efficiency of expenditures through selection and concentration.
I would like the Advisory Panel on the Modalities of Government and Administration to discuss the future of society and administration. To this end, in selecting the members, the focus was given to people in their 30s, 40s, and women, as part of our unprecedented new initiative. I believe this is a rather different approach from the past Government panels. Furthermore, the panel will invite submissions from the public while the discussions in the meeting will be made public through the Internet. I believe this is very important.
I hope that under the leadership of Minister Inada, the Advisory Panel will carry out a lively discussion that looks ahead to the future of Japan and is not confined to existing frameworks."