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Japan Times
a day ago
- Business
- Japan Times
Ishiba eyes dissolving Lower House in wake of possible no-confidence motion
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is considering dissolving the House of Representatives and holding a snap election if the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP) submits a no-confidence motion against his Cabinet, government and ruling party sources said Tuesday. Ishiba is apparently sending a warning to the CDP at a time when battles between the ruling and opposition camps are intensifying ahead of the June 22 end of the current ordinary session of the Diet, or Japan's parliament, and the subsequent House of Councilors election this summer. Since the Liberal Democratic Party-Komeito coalition currently lacks a majority in the Lower House, a senior government official said, "Dissolving (the Lower House) would be the only option, as a no-confidence motion, if submitted, is expected to be approved (in that chamber)." Ishiba has repeatedly told his aides that he would dissolve the chamber, according to the sources. In the opposition camp, only the CDP has 51 or more Lower House members, a requirement for introducing a no-confidence motion. If a no-confidence motion passes the Lower House, the prime minister would have to dissolve the chamber or resign, along with his Cabinet members. Recent media polls suggest public support for the Ishiba Cabinet remains low but is showing signs of bottoming out. A senior administration official said the ruling bloc's share of seats in the Lower House is "unlikely to decrease further" if the next general election is held soon. There are also political calculations that the ruling bloc would be able to criticize the CDP for creating a political vacuum by submitting a no-confidence motion amid a mountain of challenges, such as elevated rice prices and tariff negotiations with the United States. At a news conference on Tuesday, Shunichi Suzuki, chair of the LDP's General Council, said that the prime minister "should confidently face the people's judgment" if a no-confidence motion is submitted. The same day, CDP leader Yoshihiko Noda told a party meeting that he will make "an appropriate decision at the appropriate time." Some in the CDP are concerned about the party's sluggish approval ratings and slow preparations for the next general election. A CDP member who has served as a Cabinet minister said the party's current leadership is unlikely to submit a no-confidence motion, citing its recent deal with the ruling coalition on the pension reform bill. Meanwhile, others in the CDP are calling for a tougher stance against the administration in the lead-up to the Upper House election. CDP heavyweight Ichiro Ozawa told reporters that the party "would not be qualified as the leading opposition party if it is shaken by threats."
Japan Times
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Japan enacts bill to promote AI development and address its risks
Parliament on Wednesday enacted a bill to establish a new law that will promote the development of artificial intelligence while addressing risks associated with the technology. The bill cleared the House of Councilors, the upper chamber, by a majority vote with support from the Liberal Democratic Party-led ruling bloc and opposition parties including the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and Nippon Ishin no Kai. The measure had been adopted by the House of Representatives, the lower chamber, in April. To address mounting concerns over the spread of false and erroneous information generated by AI tools, the new law includes a provision to allow the government to disclose the names of malicious businesses in the event of crime using AI. The law states that if AI is used for malicious purposes, it may "facilitate crimes, leakage of personal information and copyright violations." If a serious incident that infringes on citizens' rights and interests occurs, the government will conduct investigations, advise and instruct related business operators, provide information to the public and take other necessary actions. Companies will be required to cooperate with the government. The law does not include penalty provisions so as not discourage technological development. Existing laws including the Penal Code and the copyright law will be applied, instead. The government will set up a strategic team on AI comprising all Cabinet ministers to strengthen Japan's competitiveness. The team will also draft a government basic policy on AI. Considering the rise in crimes involving pornography created with AI tools, the Cabinet committees of both chambers adopted a supplementary resolution calling for enhancing measures against issues related to deepfakes, or images, sounds and videos that seem realistic but are fabricated.
Japan Times
28-05-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
LDP's Shimomura denies he ordered kickbacks to resume in 2022
Hakubun Shimomura, former policy chief of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said Tuesday that he did not request kickback practices at an LDP faction be resumed after they were once suspended in April 2022. Speaking as a witness at a meeting of the Budget Committee of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of parliament, Shimomura said the resumption was not decided at an executive meeting in August 2022. In a hearing in February, a former chief accountant of the now-defunct faction once led by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that "a faction executive" asked for the restart of the kickback system in July 2022, and the resumption was decided at an executive meeting in August of the same year. The testimonies of the former chief accountant and Shimomura, whom the leading opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and others regard as "the faction executive" in question, conflicted with each other. According to Shimomura's explanation, a faction member called for kickbacks exceeding their quotas in their fundraising ticket sales after a fundraising party was held in May 2022. Shimomura said he had told Abe, then head of the faction, and the former chief accountant after June of that year that "such a call has come out." Shimomura also said that there was such a call in his talks over the phone with the former chief accountant in late July of the same year, after Abe's death. Shimomura said he "merely told them in a businesslike way" such opinions, emphasizing that "I didn't mean I requested the resumption." He told the day's committee meeting that the executive meeting held in August 2022 "discussed means to conduct kickbacks in forms other than cash refunds but did not reach a conclusion." His explanation matches testimony given by Hiroshige Seko, a Lower House lawmaker, who has left the LDP, that the executive meeting was about alternatives for the faction to buy up tickets at fundraising parties by its member lawmakers. Shimomura explained that the discrepancies between testimonies from him and the former chief accountant came from differences in perception. "A conclusion should have been made clear at the executive meeting," he said. "I need to reflect on how I phrase things if I made the former chief accountant misunderstand." Some opposition lawmakers said the facts have not been made clear yet and called for summoning former LDP General Council chief Ryu Shionoya and former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, a former leader of the faction, as witnesses.
Japan Times
24-05-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Bill that would raise Japanese pension benefits on track to pass parliament
The Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito are preparing to accept an opposition party proposal to amend a pension reform bill, paving the way for its enactment during the current session of parliament. The ruling bloc will back the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan's amendment, which includes a plan to raise basic pension benefits, senior LDP and Komeito members said Saturday. With the proposal getting the nod, including from LDP members who had demanded the increased benefits be scrapped from the original draft, the bill is likely to pass during the current session, which ends June 22. The level of basic pension benefits, provided to all citizens, is expected to slump over time due to the country's shrinking and aging population. The government had sought to include in the bill a plan to hike basic pension benefits by tapping reserves of the kōsei nenkin public pension program for corporate and government workers, as well as state coffers. However, some in the LDP expressed concerns that this would briefly lower kōsei nenkin benefits and create a fresh burden for citizens. Senior party members in the Upper House opposed the plan, out of worries about its impact on this summer's election. The benefit-raising plan is absent from the pension reform bill, which the government recently submitted to parliament. The CDP slammed the move, saying that the bill lacks the most important element, comparing it to an "anpan (bean paste bun) without bean paste." On Thursday, it presented to the ruling bloc an outline of its proposed amendment saying that basic pension benefits would be hiked if benefit levels are found to decrease in the government's 2029 public pension review. Senior LDP members including Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama and Masaji Matsuyama, the party's secretary-general in the Upper House, held intermittent discussions Friday and agreed broadly to reflect the CDP amendment in the bill as a supplementary provision. The CDP's proposed amendment "is in line with Komeito's original call," Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito told reporters Saturday in Satte, Saitama Prefecture. "It will lead to a sense of security for the working generation." The ruling parties and the CDP are slated to discuss the issue again on Monday. If they agree, they will amend the bill, aiming to pass it through the Lower House and send it on to the Upper House within the month. Some LDP executives have proposed that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, the president of the LDP, and CDP President Yoshihiko Noda meet to give a final confirmation of the expected agreement, in order to ensure the bill's enactment during the current parliamentary session. Speaking to reporters in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, Noda said he wants to have the bill pass the Lower House by next weekend.
Japan Today
21-05-2025
- Business
- Japan Today
Ishiba pledges rice price rollback but rules out tax cut
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba pledged Wednesday to take necessary steps to lower rice prices that have doubled over the past year, but repeatedly rejected opposition calls to cut Japan's consumption tax to support households. During a one-on-one parliamentary debate with opposition leaders, Ishiba said he would, as soon as possible, bring rice prices down to below 4,000 yen per 5 kilograms from their average current level of 4,268 yen in early May, vowing to stake his job on achieving the target. The price of the Japanese staple has roughly doubled from a year earlier, as the grain is in short supply due to a poor harvest, while demand has grown in the wake of booming inbound tourism, with more foreign visitors enjoying rice-based dishes at restaurants. "I believe rice prices should be in the 3,000 yen range, since staying in the 4,000 yen range can't be right. We will bring them down to that target at the earliest possible date," said Ishiba, who has been compelled to act to curb the negative impact of inflation. Asked by an opposition leader if he will take responsibility as prime minister if the target is missed, Ishiba said, "I think I should," while government efforts, such as releasing emergency stockpiles, have shown little sign of pushing down rice prices. Ishiba lashed out at the opposition's request to reduce the consumption tax rate as a "tactic to woo voters" ahead of a House of Councillors election this summer -- an opportunity for the public to deliver a verdict on the government's economic policies. "You should outline as a package how you are going to make up for the expected drop in tax revenue and cope with social security," Ishiba said, although he did not unveil new measures to soften the impact of rising prices. Ishiba, meanwhile, failed to present concrete steps to tackle the adverse effects of higher U.S. tariffs by President Donald Trump, even as Yoshihiko Noda, who heads the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, took aim at the government's lack of urgency and preparedness. The main opposition party is seeking to scrap the consumption tax on food items for one year to help struggling households, using unused government funds to cover the shortfall. Noda served as prime minister for about a year through December 2012. In the opposition camp, the Democratic Party for the People and the Japan Innovation Party are also calling for a cut in the consumption tax rate, currently set at 8 percent for food and beverages and 10 percent for most other items. The Komeito party, the junior coalition partner of Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party, has expressed support for reducing the consumption tax on food items. © KYODO
