[Provisional Translation]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the 31st meeting of the Council on National Strategic Special Zones at the Prime Minister's Office.

During the meeting, the Council addressed the issues including the certification of special zone plans, the management of National Strategic Special Zones in the future, and so on.

Based on the discussion, the Prime Minister said,

“Today we are joined by Ms. Yuriko Koike, Governor of Tokyo, and Mr. Sakae Hirose, Mayor of Yabu City, both of whom have driven reforms of the bedrock regulations, and we have received new proposals from them.

First and the foremost, the nationwide implementation of regulatory exceptions that has been already in place, the review of regulations through public notices and directives, and the creation of a Regulatory Sandbox system are all important themes.  I ask that the Council accelerate its discussion toward the early realization of these items.

It is an unwavering policy of the Abe Cabinet to carry out reforms of the bedrocks regulations with a sense of urgency. The National Strategic Special Zones serve as a powerful breakthrough to this end. As echoed by the Council members from the private sector who have stated that the decisions related to the National Strategic Special Zones are crystal clear, all of them were decided through an open and appropriate process.  Recently, the coordination done directly among ministries and agencies without the involvement of any third party has led to an endless argument about what was said or not said among the parties involved, inviting public distrust.

Today we received a proposal from private-sector members on improving transparency. Based on the proposal received today, which calls for such measures as the increased use of this Council and other open fora to hold direct discussions among the ministries and agencies in charge of regulations as well as Minister Kajiyama and private-sector members, I would like the private-sector members to further spell out the measures for enhancing the operations.

We need to further step up our efforts for reforms of the bedrocks regulations, which are the foundation of our Growth Strategy, while improving the ability of the National Strategic Special Zones to materialized reforms by reviewing operations aimed at improving transparency.  Reforms of the bedrocks regulations are indispensable for the realization of steady growth.  I am determined to continue to make every effort for this endeavor.”