"banned" bnp 2014 broadcast

[Kardan]

An interesting fact on the aging Japanese population is that more adults in Japan use nappies than babies and children - surely as time goes on, Japan's economy is going to be worse off?

[Yawn]

if u have an ageing population and all ur younger population are leaving to work elsewhere that is v bad

[Ardemax]

No, that's how corporatism works by driving down wages of developed countries. That's why multinationals love mass immigration.

Japan barely allows any immigration let alone mass immigration, and it's the third largest economy in the world. Japan even faces a sharp population decrease (which would do it no harm considering how jam packed it is) over the next century on current population projections yet still doesn't feel the need to dilute or sacrifice it's ancient culture for the sake of a few GDP points.

But surely as you are an advocate of abolishing the minimum wage, this sort of cheap labour is going to help private businesses and therefore the economy as whole?

Or is there a difference between immigrant cheap labour and 'born-and-bred' cheap labour?

[-:Undertaker:-]

It also has an aging population, has the highest debt as a percentage of GDP and the yen is getting stronger (I think) which is negatively impacting Japanese businesses. It's not all roses so don't paint it out to be to support your point.

I said that it had an aging population, but it manages. In terms of Japanese debt, that's not to do with an aging population and is more to do with a state that has overspent itself in recent years. And true it's not all roses. But who claimed it was? Are we all roses? No.

An interesting fact on the aging Japanese population is that more adults in Japan use nappies than babies and children - surely as time goes on, Japan's economy is going to be worse off?

Not if Japan is highly productive (which it is) and highly advanced (which it is). A lot of people can't seem to wrap their heads around the fact that having a high population doesn't mean you are a rich country. If you look at GDP figures, China is at the same level as Japan yet China's population is 1bn+ where as Japan's is at 100m+ ..... yet the Japanese have a better quality of living and higher wages.

It's GDP per capita what counts. A country with 1m people could have the highest GDP per capita in the world whereas a country with 1.3bn people could have the lowest GDP per capita. GDP per capita is the true measure of an economy.

But surely as you are an advocate of abolishing the minimum wage, this sort of cheap labour is going to help private businesses and therefore the economy as whole?

Or is there a difference between immigrant cheap labour and 'born-and-bred' cheap labour?

Well yes, there is a difference. Without a minimum wage, wages in the very very low end (ie students looking for a small job for a few months) would be rather low but wages as they train and learn skills would rise. That would be a natural market progression. With mass immigration, you have the likes of Polish plumbers or builders coming over here in unlimited numbers which is damaging wages of those who could be 30 years old to 50 years old (the kind of people who have a family to support and have likely just bought a house).... meaning its an artificial lowering of wage rates among those who have acquired the skills and hitting those who will be most stretched financially.