Japan to Grant 65bn Yen a Year to Keep Post-Office Network Alive

A revised postal law, including an annual grant of about 65 billion yen to Japan Post to sustain its office network, passed the upper house. The intent is to keep nationwide — especially rural — postal service running, since the network is basic public infrastructure that market logic alone can't sustain. But the timing is sensitive: amid recent scandals at Japan Post, the large grant raises questions of oversight. It captures the perennial dilemma of public service: universal access is essential, yet its cost is borne by all taxpayers while the provider's governance is in doubt. For readers, it is a case study in how a shrinking-population society maintains universal service — subsidies become inevitable, but pairing them with accountability is the real test of governance.