Keidanren Chairman Toyoda's Opening Presentation December2|1996　 　1.Good morning| my name is Shoichiro Toyoda| Chairman of Keidanren. I am speak- ing as a representative of Keidanren| one of the sponsor organizations for Tokyo Symposium - Regulatory Reform. 　Firstly| I would like to offer my sincere gratitude to the people at the OECD secretariat as well as at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of International Trade and Industry| who worked so hard from the early stages of planning and implementation to make today's symposium a success. I would also like to extend my greetings to the many people in attendance from all over the world and from all walks of life. 　2.The goal of today's symposium is to discuss the current state of regulatory reform and issues from an international perspective with the participation of the learned individuals from the OECD member countries. Keidanren hopes that today's discussions will be valuable for the participants from both Japan and abroad in the following three respects. 　3.The first point is the formation of a common　understanding on the necessity of regulatory reform. Policy coordination among the leading nations of the world is a central issue for maintaining stable and sustainable development of the global economy in this age of increasing interdependence within international society. The key to successful policy coordination is to reach an agreement on the fundamental direction of economic policies of different countries. My hope for today's discussion is that there will be a renewed recognition that the implementation of regulatory reform which vitalizes economies by stimulating private sector activities and driving market dynamism is a common issue for all countries. 　4.The second point is deepening mutual understanding for the harmonization of systems in different countries. 　Differences in the systems often interfer with the smooth flow of investment and trade. It is not unusual for there to be major differences in systems designed to en- sure safety and protect the environment and for these differences to function in practice as nontariff barriers. Since it is desirable that the systems of various countries be harmonized in a mutually suitable manner accompanying the progress of the globalization of economic activities| there is a strong need for promotion of mutual acceptance of national standards and for the expan- sion of internationl standards. In this sense| I hope that today's discussions will clarify ways of promoting the international coordination of regulatory management and outstanding issues. 　5.The third point is sharing the experiences on regulatory reform among various countries. 　The vested interests and entrenched business practices of companies and organi- zations protected by regulations often stand in the way of the promotion of regulatory reform. It is also necessary to find ways of replacing public regu- lations such as the definition of standards or requirements by the private sec- tor itself. Furthermore| there is a need to have a well-established relief sys- tems| including product liability and insurance| for cases when unexpected ac- cidents occur after easing regulations. I hope that the exchanges of informa- tion about the ways in which countries have dealt with specific situations| and their strengths and drawbacks| will countribute to the trouble-free introduc- tion of regulatory reform in each country. 　6.Keidanren requests your cooperation and involvement in today's symposium to pursue these three points. Additionally| since this symposium is being held in Tokyo| I would like to emphasize the following two points which are related to the last point mentioned above about sharing the experiences of various coun- tries. 　7.Firstly| I would like the participants from abroad to correctly understand the current reality of regulatory reform in Japan. 　I am not sure whether it results from the inadequate communication by Japan or from the thought that nature of Japanese systems and those in other leading na- tions are different| but I often hear from foreigners I meet that Japanese mar- ket is difficult to access or to invest in. While Japan should listen closely to these opinions and be prepared to promptly make adjustments in areas where revision is needed| I would also request your understanding that regulatory reform is moving forward at a rapid pace in Japan and regulatory systems have changed significantry since early 1990s. 　Regulatory reform based on requests and opinions from Japan and abroad is being implemented as seen in the policies presented in the Government's March 1995 Deregulation Action Plan. The second Hashimoto Cabinet was formed on November 8| with a clear statement by Prime Minister Hashimoto that the new cabinet would move forward with economic structural reforms| lead by regulatory system re- forms| and financial system reforms and promptly instructed Minister of Inter- national Trade and Industry Sato and other Cabinet members to proceed with such reforms. Therefore| it can be expected that regulatory reform will be further accelerated. 　It is my hope that by taking this opportunity to explain the current state of Japan's efforts| issues that are being confronted in the process and new ap- proaches designed to replace public regulations. It will help to promote better understanding of Japan and be useful to the consideration of regulatory reform by the OECD and the promotino of reforms in various countries. 　8.The second hope related to the sharing of experiences is that this will be a chance to acquire the latest and most accurate information about international trends in regulatory management| including OECD work| and the actual state of regulatory reform in various countries. 　Deregulation in Japan has taken their cue from trends in regulatory reform in other countries. Liberalization of telecommunication sector in 1985 was based on experiences in the United States| and a model for the upcoming financial sector reforms is the United Kingdom's 'Big Bang'. 　As I mentioned above| Japan is in a period of dramatic change| making it all the more important that it correctly understands and assesses the reforms in other countries. I expect that today's symposium will be an excellent opportu- nity for learning from oberseas examples. 　9.What I have presented here is what Keidanren hopes to achieve with this sympo- sium as one of the sponsor organizations. It is my sincere hope that this sym- posium will meet these expectations and will be a valuable experience for all participants.