Amid increasing pressure on him to compromise, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi reiterated Tuesday that he will stick to his plan to cap the annual issuance of government bonds at 30 trillion yen starting this fiscal year.
In an interview with The Japan Times, he also stressed his determination to privatize or abolish some "big name" public corporations, including Japan Highway Public Corp. and Japan National Oil Corp.
"At a time when the (government's annual) revenue is 50 trillion yen, we are issuing government bonds for 30 trillion yen. What I am proposing is not an austerity policy but a rather correction to a lax fiscal policy," Koizumi said during a 30-minute interview at the Prime Minister's Official Residence.