TOKYO -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday said he will introduce new economic stimulus measures in May. During a news conference, he said the plan will include a wage hike for child care workers that he hopes will attract more people to the field.

He said the package will be designed to help all citizens work and live actively.

Too few child care facilities and professionals make up one of the biggest challenges facing Japan. "I will work on improving the pay of these workers by introducing a wage scale in which pay increases in tandem with experience."

The prime minister also said the plan will tackle the problem of people leaving the workforce early to take care of aging parents.

No details were offered.

When asked about the timing of a consumption tax hike, now set for April 2017, Abe said, "As I have repeatedly mentioned, I will raise the tax as planned unless Japan faces a serious situation, like another global financial crisis or earthquake [such as the one that struck northeastern Japan five years ago]."

He was also asked about possibly dissolving the lower house, then holding a snap election on the same day, in July, that upper house balloting is to take place. "I'm not considering [that] at all," he said.

Despite his comment on the consumption tax, Abe appears to be weighing the pros and cons of a hike. It was supposed to go to 10% from the current 8% this past October. Nobel winning economists Joseph Stiglitz and Paul Krugman -- both of whom advised Abe on economic policy in Tokyo earlier this month -- warned against going ahead with the increase next year, arguing that Japan's economy is still not strong enough.

Japan will host a Group of Seven summit in May. "The world's current economic situation will be the main theme," Abe said.

The prime minister also said the global economy will be on the agenda later this week in Washington, where the prime minister will meet with President Barack Obama and other global leaders.

"I want to take the opportunity to discuss global economics with experts in the field," Abe said.

The press conference came only hours after Japan's legislature passed the fiscal 2016 budget, a record 96.7 trillion yen ($858 billion) spending plan.