Top Japanese official to quit over pension scandal

Japan’s top government spokesman, Yasuo Fukuda, said today he would resign after admitting that he failed to pay into the country’s troubled pension system.

Fukuda, chief secretary for the cabinet of prime minister Junichiro Koizumi, is one of several politicians over the past week to acknowledge not paying into the system.

The resignation of such a high-profile official is an embarrassment for Koizumi’s government, which is struggling to salvage the pension system.

Japan’s society is rapidly ageing, and fears are growing that a smaller workforce will not be able to contribute enough to pay the pensions of the retired.