Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Yan emphasizes that budget allocation will be “fairly handled” during inspection of disaster-stricken areas
Inspected the recovery status of areas affected by the Noto Peninsula earthquake and heavy rains, and also mentioned responses to budget cut comments
Quick Look
- On the 4th, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Kazuo Yan visited Ishikawa Prefecture, which was affected by the Noto Peninsula earthquake and heavy rain.
- In an interview after the tour, he emphasized his intention to fairly allocate the budget even to local governments that do not support the Liberal Democratic Party.
- In response to criticism over his past budget cut comments, he explained that he had caused a misunderstanding and expressed his intention to continue serving.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Mr. Yan reportedly made a statement at a meeting in Tochigi Prefecture about cutting the budgets of local governments that do not support the Liberal Democratic Party.
On the 4th, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Kazuo Yan visited Ishikawa Prefecture, which was affected by the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake and the subsequent heavy rains, and inspected the restoration and reconstruction status of farmland, fishing ports, and other areas. After the tour, he spoke to reporters and emphasized that even if the heads of disaster-stricken local governments do not support the LDP, ``we want to respond firmly'' to matters such as budget allocation.
Bunshun Online and Weekly Shincho reported that Mr. Yan made a statement at a meeting in his home prefecture, Tochigi, to the effect that he had "significantly cut" the road budgets of local governments that did not support the Liberal Democratic Party in the recent House of Representatives election. At a press conference on the evening of the 2nd, he generally acknowledged what he had said, but explained that he had not lobbied the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism for budget cuts.
After the inspection on the 4th, he emphasized that ``we will put together a project that meets the needs on the ground'' in order to rebuild the disaster-stricken areas. Regarding the restoration of water intake facilities in Suzu City, Ishikawa Prefecture, which is an issue for the full resumption of farming, he said, ``We would like to work with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and the prefecture to respond.''
Open Questions
- What are the details of the true meaning and impact of the budget cut statement?
