The main focus of the Diet session this week will be on the fate of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Kazuo Yan, who said he had "cut" the local government budgets of mayors who did not support him in the House of Representatives election. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi intends to keep him in office, but the opposition parties are poised to intensify their pursuit at the House of Representatives Budget Committee, which begins on the 13th. The six opposition parties in the House of Councilors, including the Constitutional Democratic Party, will begin full-scale deliberations on whether to submit a resolution to censure Mr. Yan.
The Budget Committee will be held in the House of Representatives for two days until the 14th, and in the House of Councilors on the 16th and 19th, with the prime minister and all cabinet members in attendance. Opposition parties including Takayuki Ochiai of the Democratic Reform Party and Hiromasa Nakano, chairman of the Komeito Party's Policy Research Center, took up questions and blamed the budget cuts on Yano's pressure. It also questions the prime minister's responsibility for making appointments.
At first, the Democratic Reform movement took the stance of assessing public opinion trends, perhaps fearing that the opposition parties would be criticized for only pursuing their own agenda. However, on the 7th, Bunshun Online reported a new suspicion that Yan's camp took supporters to the campaign venue on free buses during the House of Representatives election. There are moves by the opposition parties in the House of Councilors, including the RDP, to point the finger at him, and the House of Representatives' budget committee plans to ``make Yan's progress or retreat the main focus of questions'' (a senior official).
At a press conference on the 9th, Representative Junya Ogawa emphasized regarding the Budget Committee, ``The first priority is to investigate the truth.I want to ask how political responsibility will be taken.''
During questioning by representatives of the House of Representatives held for three days from the 7th, Mr. Yan acknowledged his cutting remarks and apologized, saying, ``It was due to my bad faith.'' He expressed his desire to continue in the role, saying, ``I will do my best to carry out my duties.'' However, the question-and-answer session of the Budget Committee becomes much tougher. Even in the Liberal Democratic Party, there is a growing voice among mid-ranking members of the House of Councilors that ``If the cabinet's approval rating declines, the prime minister will not be able to protect himself.''
The six opposition parties in the House of Councilors agreed not to respond to Yan's opinion hearing at the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Commission. The decision on whether to submit a disciplinary action will be made after hearing the responses from the Budget Committee. The ruling party has less than a majority in the House of Councilors, and Yoshitaka Saito, chairman of the Ritsumeikan Democratic Party's Country Relations Committee, expressed confidence that the bill would be passed, saying, ``I don't think there is an opposition party that opposes it.'' Although the resolution is not legally binding, if it passes, it will increase pressure on Yan and the prime minister.
Meanwhile, the government submitted a bill related to consumption tax reduction to the Diet. The prime minister has avoided making in-depth answers about the sources of funding for the tax cut or the new benefit system during representative questions, and the opposition parties have repeatedly asked for an explanation.
