What is the role of the government? First of all, it is to guard its citizens' life and property. Thus the government is responsible to design, plan, and operate the following factors by consolidating security; public services such as police and fire defense, tax and finance policies for redistributing wealth, and various regulations for peace and safety.

In that sense, there is a significant meaning that the government has made a step towards tax and finance innovation to solve the public debt exceeding over 1000 trillion yen which may threaten our nation's stability.

Underlying asset is necessary for repaying the debt. Taking measures like cuts in expenditures and securing of tax revenue are also necessary but private sectors' economic growth, the source which creates wealth, is an important factor as well. From this perspective, innovation in private sectors is essential.

For a new economic growth, we need to carry out development and manufacturing in Japan as well to meet the increasing needs of Asia and the emerging countries. On the other hand, we need to establish new business in Japan such as in fields of health care, elderly care services, lifelong learning, new tourism, new energy and energy-saving, environment, new agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries now that our country is heading fast to an aging society. In order to accomplish this, innovation in technology will be the basis however innovation in business is also extremely important.

There will be many challenges both in technology development and business development or else when connecting the two. In so doing, a major regulatory reform by the government may become one of the driving power which will extend and progress the power of innovation without draining it. Innovation due to relaxation of regulations in telecommunication and railways has created significant new needs and new business to our country which still remains vivid in our memories.

Another driving power is encountering of other cultures and business fields. There are many cases that encountering of different visions and different ideas has lead to great innovation whether within something global or something within industry-academia-government collaboration. There is indeed a great expectation in industry-academia-government collaboration which is progressing globally.

By releasing the private sectors from the so called six burden and eight burden, having regulatory reform and globalization as a base point, I do wish that this will realize the economic growth due to creating innovation, and that this economic growth will become the power of Japan to rebirth.