July 10, 2013 – This afternoon, I attended a presentation — jointly organized by JETRO and the Japanese government — about deregulation, which is described as being Abenomics third arrow.
As someone with an interest in Japanese real estate, two things in the presentation by Nishimura-san, senior vice-minister in charge of the Cabinet Office, stood out:
1. There is a plan to create National Strategic Special Zones, where “reconsidering for the regulation of a (sic) floor-area and land utilization” will be among the first priorities
2. The government plans to turn agriculture into a growth industry by allowing intermediary institutions to “lease farmland to responsible entities such as corporate farmers.”
Over the course of the 90 minute session, I heard the expression TINA (There Is No Alternative) at least six times.
The participants, which also included Takenaka-san from Keio University and Itoh-san from the University of Tokyo, seemed genuinely determined to change Japan’s regulatory environment.