Democratic Party for the People concerned about acquisition of land by foreigners
For years, observers have expressed concerns about rising prices in Niseko caused by foreign tourists flocking to such overseas-funded resorts. As a result, the bankruptcy announcement for many has suggested a cooling of the market.
However, Kazuya Shimba, Secretary General of the Democratic Party for the People, continued to express a strong sense of crisis about foreigners acquiring land in Japan at the House of Councillors Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defense on May 9. At one point, Shimba said, 'I can't help but feel anxious. I don't think I will be able to sleep tonight.' However, he received few meaningful answers from government officials, reports the Sankei Shimbun (May 9).
Shimba first mentioned Niseko, where foreign capital, including that of Chinese companies, is flowing in. 'A bowl of ramen is 2,000 yen, a pork cutlet bowl is 3,000 yen, a refill of tea is 500 yen and a sea urchin bowl is 20,000 yen,' he said. 'These are horrible prices due to an influx of foreign tourists. Rich people like [Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba] may be able to buy it, but I can't. It's terrible.'
He continued, 'I wondered how Japanese people could do business so unscrupulously, but it turns out that Chinese people are buying stores and doing business with fellow Chinese at these prices. I thought this might be just one thing, but they're buying up land all over the country, so I asked about the current situation [in the Diet], but the government has no idea what's going on. Shouldn't they have a clue?'
Liberal Democratic Party member Rio Tomono, who is the Cabinet Office Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Economic Security, replied, 'As I am the Parliamentary Vice-Minister in charge of the Important Land Survey Act, I am conducting a survey to understand the current situation within that scope.'
As the act concerns land important for national security, Tomono said, 'I will refrain from answering questions about the current situation regarding land other than what is deemed important land.' New World La Plume Niseko Resort (X) Two restaurants and an outdoor onsen
La Plume Niseko Resort SPC, a Tokyo-based special-purpose company, was the local representative company for the construction of New World La Plume Niseko Resort. Construction began in 2019. The five-villa resort was to feature 219 rooms, two restaurants and an outdoor onsen bathing facility on a 36-hectare site located near Niseko Village Ski Resort.
A source told the Sankei , that payments to a contractor on the project stopped with about 30 percent of the work completed. Construction stopped last fall.
This development could signal a shift in the market. Starting around two decades ago, investment in Niseko by wealthy foreigners, often from Australia, has flowed in, making it known around the world as a luxury ski resort. However, since the COVID-19 pandemic, the influx of Australian capital has slowed while that from China, Hong Kong and South Korea has picked up.
According to the public land price announcement for 2025 by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, residential land in Kutchan Town in the Niseko region is 181,000 yen per square meter, up 9.7 percent from the previous year. In commercial areas around Hirafuzaka, land prices are over 500,000 yen per square meter, more than double what they were 10 years ago. 'Failure is not permitted in diplomacy'
Shimba went on to say that Japan's land nationwide needs to be protected from foreign ownership. At one point, he called out the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, asking, 'How much land do they know that foreigners own?'
In response, a Cabinet Office official said, 'We are aware of the situation within the area based on the Important Land Survey Act, and we receive information on farmland and nationality written in the permission and notification from the Forestry Agency and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, but nationality is not written in other land transactions, so we are not aware of it.'
Shimba then mentioned the World Trade Organization's General Agreement on Trade in Services, which has been pointed out as a bottleneck in regulations. It is an international rule that states, 'There should be no disparity in the treatment of Japanese and foreigners.' If a 'reservation' had been made regarding land acquisition when Japan joined the agreement, it would have been possible to prohibit foreigners from owning land, but Japan did not make such a reservation.
Shimba pressed Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya. He said, 'The LDP-Sakigake coalition was in power at the time, but don't you think that decision was a diplomatic failure?'
Iwaya merely said, 'Personally, I think we need to thoroughly examine whether it was discussed whether the problems pointed out today would arise, but it was a comprehensive decision at the time.'
Shimba pointed out, 'Failure is not permitted in diplomacy. We can't go back. This is a prime example. I think the decision at the time was clearly a failure.' 'We are currently investigating'
Shimba then asked about the situation in the U.K. and France, which do not have the same 'reservation' problem as Japan. He said, 'I think they are putting in place restrictions to make it difficult for foreigners to buy up their land.' Tomono did not answer, saying, 'We are currently investigating.'
In response, Shimba was again surprised. He said, 'I have notified you of a question, but never mind.' He asked, 'Who is in charge of protecting their own country so that land other than important land is not purchased by foreigners?' Tomono replied, 'I will refrain from answering.'
Shimba expressed a sense of crisis. He asked, 'So there is no government agency that protects land other than important land? I ask the question in the hope of dispelling the public's anxiety, but it has only made me more anxious. I can't help but feel anxious. I don't think I will be able to sleep tonight.'
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