Asahi Shimbun November 2007 Opinion Polls

Dates Conducted

November 3 and 4, 2007

Released

November 6, 2007

Methodology

The poll was conducted by telephone on November 3 and 4, 2007, of voters from across Japan, whose telephone numbers were selected by a computer at random. Subjects were selected using a three-stage random sampling method (the Asahi RDD). The total number of those polled was 2088, with a 59% response rate. The numbers in [ ] are the percentages of those polled as compared to the entire population of those who answered.

Key Issues

Raising the consumption tax
Redistribution of tax revenues from big cities to rural areas
Food labeling

Disclaimer

The Mansfield Foundation is responsible for the translation of this Asahi Shimbun poll, subject to the Mansfield Foundation Terms of Use

Q1. The following question concerns the issue of taxes. Discussion of tax reform has centered, to a large extent, on an increase of the consumption tax. Do you think that raising the consumption tax is necessary, or not? (Numbers in the parentheses are the results from a poll conducted on July 7 and 8.)

Necessary	43%(40)
Not necessary	49%(51)

Q2. Some say that raising the consumption tax is necessary in order to establish a source of revenue for social security. Do you find this idea convincing, or not?

Convincing	36%
Not convincing	54%

Q3. There is a growing gap between tax revenue collected by local governments in big cities on the one hand, and rural areas on the other. Do you support the idea of establishing a new mechanism to redistribute a portion of big-city tax revenues to rural areas, or not?

Support	63%
Opposed	22%

Q4. The next question concerns food labeling. When you purchase food products, do you pay careful attention to quality-control labels showing place of origin, ingredients and expiration date, or do you not think about it?

Pay careful attention	80%
Do not think about it	19%

SQ1. For the 80% of people who answered “pay careful attention,” did you pay attention before, or did you start paying attention as a result of the improper-labeling issue that has occurred recently?

Paid attention before	85%[68]
As a result of the labeling issue	14%[11]

Q5. To what degree do you trust the labels on food products showing place of origin, ingredients and expiration date? (Please select one.)

To a large degree	8%
To a certain extent	66%
Not much	22%
Not at all	4%

Q6. In the future, will you purchase food products from a company that has labeled its products improperly, with deceptive ingredient labels and fraudulent expiration dates? (Please select one.)

Will purchase without hesitation	5%
Would purchase, depending on what steps the company takes	50%
Will try to avoid purchasing	32%
Will never purchase again	12%