Highly conscious of public criticism of the role played by public-works projects in its politics, the Liberal Democratic Party is overhauling the much-maligned system. The party is supposed to be trying to phase out programs that have outlived their usefulness and to classify those related to information technology as public-works projects. This is being taken with a grain of salt because public spending on IT-related projects could also encourage pork-barrel politics and further inflate the budget deficit.

There is no doubt that various civil-engineering projects under way are out of tune with reality. Phasing them out is an essential part of fiscal reform. Mr. Shizuka Kamei, the LDP's chief policy planner, says that controversial projects like dam construction and land reclamation should be called off. The policy change is certainly a step in the right direction.

But the panel also believes that so-called construction bonds should be issued to finance IT-related projects. These debt issues are designed primarily to fund large-scale projects such as dams, roads, airports and harbors. With the need for these traditional projects diminishing, however, it stands to reason that the money should be used for projects that improve the nation's industrial structure.