* Call for all means available to promote green technology
* Urges expanding, creating new loan schemes - draft
* Green investment seen among key pillars of next stimulus
* Ruling party executives call for extra Y20-30 trln budget
TOKYO, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Japan's ruling party will call on
the government to promote environmental investment with a major
decade-long spending program for the country, whose Prime
Minister Yoshihide Suga has made a green society a key policy
priority.
The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) said in the draft
proposal, which was seen by Reuters early on Friday, that the
government should create a fund with a size "comparable to
global standards" that supports companies investing in green
technology, without suggesting a specific figure.
Suga has said that Japan will aim for net-zero carbon
emissions by 2050 and the LDP's recommendations will serve as a
basis for the government's deliberations on a fresh stimulus
package, which Suga has ordered his cabinet to develop.
The proposal, which suggests incentives to promote green
investment will be among key pillars of the package along with
spending to cushion the immediate blow from COVID-19, will be
presented to the government on Monday, an LDP source said.
"By deploying all policy means available, the public and
private sectors must work together to achieve zero carbon
emission in 2050," said the draft, which was still subject to
change after further deliberations when it was seen by Reuters,
before being finalized by the party.
As well as calling for deregulation and tax breaks, the
proposal also urges the government to expand or create new
state-backed loan and loan guarantee schemes to support firms
hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"It seems (the new package) will clearly be different from
just providing support to cope with the pandemic," said Takeshi
Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute.
"There will be an increasing number of measures with an eye
on a post-COVID society," he said.
The draft also called on the government to provide "strong
support" for airlines hit by the pandemic, with measures such as
slashing airport fees and fuel tax.
And it urged the extension of a subsidy for travel that has
provoked concerns over a resurgence of coronavirus infections.
These hit a record daily high of 570 cases in Tokyo on
Friday, topping the previous high of 539, city officials said,
after 9,792 tests, another record.
With rising infections clouding the outlook, Japan said on
Friday it would extend until February next year a subsidy scheme
that compensates companies for retaining jobs while temporarily
closing business due to the pandemic.
Ruling party executives have called for an extra budget
worth around 20-30 trillion yen ($192-$288 billion), which will
fund part of the stimulus package.
($1 = 104.0900 yen)
(Reporting by Daniel Leussink and Tetsushi Kajimoto, writing by
Leika Kihara; Editing by Chris Gallagher, Lincoln Feast and
Alexander Smith)