The powerful lower house of the Japanese parliament yesterday approved a set of bills intended to overhaul the public pension system, which is overshadowed by a pension non-payment scandal involving top politicians.
The pension reform bills, which were sent to the upper house for further debate, would progressively raise pension premiums to deal with a growing number of retirees while the number of the working age people falls.
Under the package, the government would also thoroughly review the entire pension scheme, including taxes, premiums and benefits.
"The legislation passed the lower house," a Diet official said.
Under the bills, salaried workers' pension contributions would be gradually raised to 18.30 percent of their income by 2017 from the current 13.58 percent.
For others, such as business owners and the self-employed including politicians, the monthly premium would be gradually raised from 13,300 yen (US$117) to 16,900 yen by 2017.
Officials at the upper house declined to comment on when the package would complete its passage through parliament, but news media said the upper house would approve the bills by mid-June.
The approval by the lower house followed an accord struck between the ruling two-party coalition and the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), which agreed to create a three-party committee to discuss pension reforms.
Parliamentary debate over the pension reform has been dogged by a damaging political scandal, with several cabinet ministers and top opposition lawmakers forced to admit that they failed to make compulsory pension payments for periods ranging from several months to two decades.
Gaza is rapidly running out of its limited fuel supply and stocks of food staples might become tight, officials said, after Israel blocked the entry of fuel and goods into the war-shattered territory, citing fighting with Iran. The Israeli military closed all Gaza border crossings on Saturday after announcing airstrikes on Iran carried out jointly with the US. Israeli authorities late on Monday night said that they would reopen the Kerem Shalom crossing from Israel to Gaza yesterday, for “gradual entry of humanitarian aid” into the strip, without saying how much. Israeli authorities previously said the crossings could not be operated safely during
Hungarian authorities temporarily detained seven Ukrainian citizens and seized two armored cars carrying tens of millions of euros in cash across Hungary on suspicion of money laundering, officials said on Friday. The Ukrainians were released on Friday, following their detention on Thursday, but Hungarian officials held onto the cash, prompting Ukraine to accuse Hungary’s Russia-friendly government of illegally seizing the money. “We will not tolerate this state banditism,” Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha said. The seven detained Ukrainians were employees of the Ukrainian state-owned Oschadbank, who were traveling in the two armored cars that were carrying the money between Austria and
Kosovar President Vjosa Osmani on Friday after dissolving the Kosovar parliament said a snap election should be held as soon as possible to avoid another prolonged political crisis in the Balkan country at a time of global turmoil. Osmani said it is important for Kosovo to wrap up the upcoming election process and form functional institutions for political stability as the war rages in the Middle East. “Precisely because the geopolitical situation is that complex, it is important to finish this electoral process which is coming up,” she said. “It is very hard now to imagine what will happen next.” Kosovo, which declared
Counting was under way in Nepal yesterday, after a high-stakes parliamentary election to reshape the country’s leadership following protests last year that toppled the government. Key figures vying for power include former Nepalese prime minister K. P. Sharma Oli, rapper-turned-mayor Balendra Shah, who is bidding for the youth vote, and newly elected Nepali Congress party leader Gagan Thapa. In Kathmandu’s tea shops and city squares, people were glued to their phones, checking results as early trends flashed up — suggesting Shah’s centrist Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) was ahead. Nepalese Election Commission spokesman Prakash Nyupane said the counting was ongoing “in a peaceful manner”
RSS