No. 1259 Bill on Children and Family Affairs Agency
A bill on creating the Children and Family Affairs Agency was presented April 19 for debate in the House of Representatives, and was approved May 17 by the Plenary Session to be sent to the House of Councilors. Agenda of ‘socialization of child bearing’ and ‘the best benefits for children’ may be undermined by the bill, replaced by prominence of ‘responsibility of a family’.
DON’T SIMPLIFY ISSUES, RENDERING TO FAMILY’S RESPONSIBILITY
The bill proclaims that ‘the agency is a commanding post for placing programs and policies for children in the center of society, seeing issues from their point of view, safeguarding their rights, not leaving any one behind and assuring their sound growth with efforts of the entire society’.
The agency will be created in the Cabinet Office as a supplementary organ and three branches will be set up under its director.
However, the bill does not contain proposals raised persistently from NPOs; to certify activities to demand the government for improvements, representing children, and to disseminate among people the idea of rights of children. It does not encompass, either, establishment of ‘a commissioner system for children’, in which consultations from children should be proceeded to administrative schemes to save them from the sufferings.
Conservative politicians emphasize ‘families’
The former government led by Premier Suga tried to attract voters’ attention to creation of a children’s agency, seeing the general election, but the premier had withdrawn earlier. The issue was again a focal point in the presidential election of the ruling Liberal Democratic party (LDP). The incumbent Kishida administration appointed Ms Noda Seiko as Minister of State for Measures for Declining Childbirth, who had been so fervent to deal with the affairs. The Cabinet’s meeting approved the name ‘Children and Family Affairs Agency’ last December. The ruling LDP had had their discussions ahead of it, in which the conservatives had advised, saying it is appropriate to put importance on families in terms of child bearing and, accordingly, to reflect the notion in naming of an agency’. Thus, a word ‘family’ was incorporated.
A triple-channeled program
The government used to claim to rectify the so-called vertically-divided structure of administrative jobs. When seeing the Ministry of Health, Labor and Social Welfare, however, the office is too huge to work properly (the Ministry of Labor should have been left independent). Concerning preschool children, three offices are in charge: nurseries are managed by the said Ministry, kindergartens, by the Ministry of Education and Science & Technology, and children’s circles are in the jurisdiction of the Cabinet Office.
Discussions were once made some years ago to unify nurseries and kindergartens to end the double-channeled structure of preschool education, but, consequently, children’s circles were created to be controlled by the Cabinet Office. Thus, the current triple-channeled system has been produced. The clue does not lie in moving from one ministry to another, but in clarifying authority and responsibility.
Elaborated steps and financial resources are keys
What is absent in assisting children is sufficient and effective measures; the number of nurseries has grown so as to cut the number of waiting children. It is good, but these nurseries are privatized due to the government’s policy of deregulation (that means workers are paid less wages), or some of them have no playground.
One more crucial task is free nursing of infants with ages between zero and two years. The amount of child benefit must be raised. Benefits must be extended to high school students, too. School lunches should be free of charge. Medical fee must be free until they become a high school student age. So many tasks are to be challenged.
The 2017 expenditure on family affairs in Japan occupies 1.6% of its GDP, which represents the 30th rank of the 39 members of OECD (=Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development). It is pressing, too, to secure financial sources to implement substantial measures.
法案は、「こどもに関する取組み・政策を社会の真ん中に据え、こどもの視点で、こどもの権利を保障し、こどもを誰ひとり取り残さず、健やかな成長を社会全体で後押しするための司令塔」とうたう。
内閣府の外局として設置し、長官の下に３部門を置くとしている。
法案には、ＮＰＯなどから要望の強かった、子どもの代弁者として政府などに改善を求めたり、子どもの権利を周知する活動や、子どもの相談を受けて救済につなげる活動などを行う「子どもコミッショナー」制度は盛り込まれなかった。
保守派が｢家庭｣
菅前政権は、「こども庁」の創設を総選挙の目玉政策にしようとしたが退陣。総裁選でも争点になった。岸田文雄政権は、強い意欲を示した野田聖子氏を少子化担当相に任命。昨年12月閣議で「こども家庭庁」とする名称を決めた。それに先立って自民党内の議論で、「子育てに対する家庭の役割を重視した名称にするのが望ましい」など保守派の意見を入れて「家庭」が入った。
実態は三重行政
政府は、「縦割り行政の是正」を言う。しかし、厚労省の場合は巨大すぎてガバナンスが効かないことである（労働省はそのままで良かった）。就学前の子ども子育て施策は、保育所が厚労省、幼稚園が文科省、認定こども園が内閣府と２省１府にまたがる。
かつて、幼稚園と保育園の「二重行政」の解消のため「幼保一元化」が掲げられたが、認定こども園が内閣府の所管になり「三重行政」になった。組織いじりではなく、所管と責任を明確にすることこそが求められる。
施策と財源こそ
子ども子育て支援で欠けているのは、施策の不十分さである。待機児童対策で保育園を増やしたのはいいが、規制緩和で民営化が進められ（保育労働者の低賃金化）、園庭のない保育園も増えた。
０から２歳児の保育無償化も急務だ。児童手当の引上げや高校生への拡大も求められる。学校給食の無償化、高校生までの医療費無償化など、やるべきことは山積している。
日本の家族対策支出（２０１７年）は、ＧＤＰ比で１・６％、ＯＥＣＤ加盟国39カ国中30位である。施策の充実のためには、財源の確保も待ったなしである。
英訳版↓
No. 1259 Bill on Children and Family Affairs Agency
A bill on creating the Children and Family Affairs Agency was presented April 19 for debate in the House of Representatives, and was approved May 17 by the Plenary Session to be sent to the House of Councilors. Agenda of ‘socialization of child bearing’ and ‘the best benefits for children’ may be undermined by the bill, replaced by prominence of ‘responsibility of a family’.
DON’T SIMPLIFY ISSUES, RENDERING TO FAMILY’S RESPONSIBILITY
The bill proclaims that ‘the agency is a commanding post for placing programs and policies for children in the center of society, seeing issues from their point of view, safeguarding their rights, not leaving any one behind and assuring their sound growth with efforts of the entire society’.
The agency will be created in the Cabinet Office as a supplementary organ and three branches will be set up under its director.
However, the bill does not contain proposals raised persistently from NPOs; to certify activities to demand the government for improvements, representing children, and to disseminate among people the idea of rights of children. It does not encompass, either, establishment of ‘a commissioner system for children’, in which consultations from children should be proceeded to administrative schemes to save them from the sufferings.
Conservative politicians emphasize ‘families’
The former government led by Premier Suga tried to attract voters’ attention to creation of a children’s agency, seeing the general election, but the premier had withdrawn earlier. The issue was again a focal point in the presidential election of the ruling Liberal Democratic party (LDP). The incumbent Kishida administration appointed Ms Noda Seiko as Minister of State for Measures for Declining Childbirth, who had been so fervent to deal with the affairs. The Cabinet’s meeting approved the name ‘Children and Family Affairs Agency’ last December. The ruling LDP had had their discussions ahead of it, in which the conservatives had advised, saying it is appropriate to put importance on families in terms of child bearing and, accordingly, to reflect the notion in naming of an agency’. Thus, a word ‘family’ was incorporated.
A triple-channeled program
The government used to claim to rectify the so-called vertically-divided structure of administrative jobs. When seeing the Ministry of Health, Labor and Social Welfare, however, the office is too huge to work properly (the Ministry of Labor should have been left independent). Concerning preschool children, three offices are in charge: nurseries are managed by the said Ministry, kindergartens, by the Ministry of Education and Science & Technology, and children’s circles are in the jurisdiction of the Cabinet Office.
Discussions were once made some years ago to unify nurseries and kindergartens to end the double-channeled structure of preschool education, but, consequently, children’s circles were created to be controlled by the Cabinet Office. Thus, the current triple-channeled system has been produced. The clue does not lie in moving from one ministry to another, but in clarifying authority and responsibility.
Elaborated steps and financial resources are keys
What is absent in assisting children is sufficient and effective measures; the number of nurseries has grown so as to cut the number of waiting children. It is good, but these nurseries are privatized due to the government’s policy of deregulation (that means workers are paid less wages), or some of them have no playground.
One more crucial task is free nursing of infants with ages between zero and two years. The amount of child benefit must be raised. Benefits must be extended to high school students, too. School lunches should be free of charge. Medical fee must be free until they become a high school student age. So many tasks are to be challenged.
The 2017 expenditure on family affairs in Japan occupies 1.6% of its GDP, which represents the 30th rank of the 39 members of OECD (=Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development). It is pressing, too, to secure financial sources to implement substantial measures.
May 25, 2022