Political Economy of Fiscal Consolidation in Japan

EditorsToshihiro Ihori is a professor of economics at The University of Tokyo. He has a B.A. and an M.A. from The University of Tokyo and a Ph.D. in economics from Johns Hopkins University. His major field of research is public economics. Details are at the web site of the Graduate School of Economics, Faculty of Economics, The University of Tokyo.Kimiko Terai is a professor of economics at Keio University. She has a B.A. in education from Tokushima University and an M.A. and a Ph.D. in economics from The University of Tokyo. Her major field of research is public economics. Details are at her website.

• Part I. Comprehensive Views of the Political Economy of Japan.- 1 Fiscal Consolidation in the Political Economy of Japan (Toshihiro Ihori; Comment, Keigo Kameda).- 2 The Political Economy of Social Security Funding: Why Social VAT Reform? (Hideki Konishi; Comment, Naomi Miyazato).- Part II. Fiscal Problems in Japan.- 3. Female Labor Supply, Social Security, and Fiscal Consolidation (Ryuta Ray Kato and Masumi Kawade; Comment, Masatoshi Jinno).- 4 Fiscal Consolidation and Local Public Finances in Japan: Incentive Problems Associated with Intergovernmental Transfers and Their Political Roles (Nobuo Akai; Comment, Takeshi Miyazaki).- 5 Public Policy and Economic Growth in the Integrating Japanese Economy (Hiroki Kondo; Comment,Takashi Fukushima).- Part III. Institutional Reforms Necessary for Fiscal Consolidation.- 6 Tax Policy under the “Generational Election System”(Takero Doi, Comment, Haruo Kondoh).- 7 Budgets under Delegation (Kimiko Terai and Amihai Glazer; Comment, Keisuke Hattori).