Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the 27th meeting of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy at the Prime Minister's Office.

During the meeting, discussion took place on "Short and Medium-to-long Term Economic and Fiscal Management and Reform" and "What is Needed to Connect Abenomics to Medium-to-long Term Development."

Based on the discussion, the Prime Minister said in his address,

"It will soon be one year since we reestablished this Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy on January 9 of this year. In that time, you have compiled important policies, including actions in line with the Basic Policies and measures in eye of the consumption tax increase as well as two economic measures. We are still only halfway towards the realization of a positive cycle of economic revitalization and fiscal soundness, but we are certainly beginning to see the light.
Governor of the Bank of Japan Kuroda has carried out quantitative and qualitative easing in a way different from the past in both their scope and reach, and at the same time, through intensive discussion and so on related to monetary policy and commodity prices, we have been able to deepen discussion and coordination between the Government and the Bank of Japan.
I would like to express my gratitude for everyone's hard work up until now.
In addition, there were reports today on economic prospects for the coming fiscal year, the compilation of the Government budget draft, and the Government-Labor-Management Meeting.
From private-sector members as well, I received the extremely valuable proposals that we should consider a time period of the next two to three years and thoroughly conduct economic and fiscal management, and that furthermore, in fixing our gaze directly on a variety of medium-to-long term structural changes, we should advance concrete measures toward 2020 on issues such as the problem of decreasing birthrates, women's active participation, the workforce, and the ways that people work.
Next year will truly be a critical time for the realization of a positive cycle of economic revitalization and fiscal soundness. I would like you to deepen collaboration with the Industrial Competitiveness Council and undertake further work on cross-sector issues.
I request your continued assistance in the coming year as well."