Ishiba urges party to unite as crucial upper house vote looms
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (C) addresses a meeting of Liberal Democratic Party secretary generals in Tokyo on Saturday.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Saturday urged senior members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to come together to "continue the coalition government" with a crucial House of Councillors election just weeks away.
His calls come after the LDP saw its worst-ever result in a Tokyo assembly election amid persistent money scandals and voter drift to smaller parties. With the LDP and coalition partner the Komeito party a minority in the House of Representatives, losing the upper house could cost Ishiba his job and reshape the ruling bloc.
Referring to the "harsh" Tokyo results at a meeting of prefectural secretary generals, Ishiba said the LDP "must analyze why new parties are gathering support and put up a fight in the upper house election."
A senior LDP lawmaker said the party is "losing unifying power among conservatives."
Their comments appeared to refer to smaller parties such as the right-wing populist Sanseito, which secured its first three Tokyo assembly seats in the election last weekend.
With cost-of-living concerns expected to be the biggest issue for voters in the July 20 upper house race, the LDP is promising cash handouts to ease household burdens.
A Kyodo News poll Sunday showed a majority of respondents oppose the policy, while 55.7 percent said tax revenue should be used to lower consumption tax -- a key pledge by multiple opposition parties -- in the event it increased.
At the meeting, Ishiba pushed back on the sales tax cuts as being of a greater benefit to the wealthy, adding that "while the cuts sound good, what happens to funding for social security?"
© KYODO
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yomiuri Shimbun
2 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Harley-Davidson Japan to Be Fined for Unfair Trade Practices; Company Enriched Itself by Setting Overly High Sales Quotas for Dealers
The Japan Fair Trade Commission has decided to issue a cease and desist order against Harley-Davidson Japan K.K. (HDJ), a Tokyo-based motorcycle sales company, for unfair trade practices in violation of the antimonopoly law, sources report. According to the sources, HDJ unilaterally imposed difficult-to-meet sales quotas on dealers, a practice which was detrimental to them. The JFTC is also expected to issue a surcharge payment order of about ¥200 million. Harley-Davidson is the leading manufacturer of large motorcycles in the United States, with some models costing over ¥5 million. HDJ, its Japanese subsidiary, has an exclusive distribution agreement with about 90 dealers in Japan. The sources say that no later than January 2023, HDJ began saddling dozens of dealers with sales quotas that they could not meet without purchasing new motorcycles from themselves. HDJ also indicated that it would not renew the dealers' exclusive sales contracts if they did not at least partially meet these quotas. The dealers, not wanting their contracts to be terminated, bought new motorcycles in the names of their own executives and employees to drive up their sales numbers. It is believed that the purchased vehicles were registered in the names of the executives and others and resold as 'registered unused vehicles' at discount prices lower than those of new vehicles. Some dealers spent tens of millions of yen a year buying their own motorcycles. The JFTC found that HDJ used its strong position to gain profits for itself at the dealers' expense, and that such practices legally constituted 'abuse of a superior bargaining position.' It has already sent HDJ a plan for measures to be taken and will formally issue the order after hearing HDJ's opinion.
Asahi Shimbun
2 hours ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Survey: Majority of big companies feel economy is at a ‘standstill'
Supermarket employees display bags of stockpiled rice released by the central government on May 31 in Tokyo's Ota Ward. (Tatsuo Kanai) Fifty-seven of 100 major Japanese companies believe the domestic economy is 'at a standstill,' the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic for a majority to feel that way, an Asahi Shimbun survey showed. The figure represents an increase of 16 companies from the previous survey in July 2024. The latest 100-company survey was conducted from June 6 to 19. The last time more than 50 responding companies said the economy was at a standstill was in spring 2021, during the crisis over the novel coronavirus. The number of companies in the latest survey that say the economy is 'moderately receding' was nine, up six from the 2024 survey. Only 33 companies feel the economy is 'moderately expanding,' a significant decrease from 53 in the 2024 survey. And zero companies believe the economy is 'significantly expanding,' the same as in the previous survey. When asked to choose up to two reasons for their evaluations, 'consumer spending' was selected by 54 companies, followed by 'capital investment' by 28 and 'wages' by 25. 'Wage growth has not kept pace with the sustained rise in prices of food, energy and other items, and households are saving money,' Makoto Tani, chairman of Skylark Holdings Co., said. The survey also found that the most common concern for Japan's economy is 'intensifying trade friction, including tariffs,' cited by 65 companies, followed by 'sluggish personal consumption,' selected by 41. 'If trade friction intensifies, it could put pressure on corporate profits and cause employment uncertainty,' Shinichiro Funabiki, president of MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings Inc., said. 'There are concerns that this could lead to a decline in domestic consumption and investment stagnation, contributing to a slowdown in the overall economy.' Teiichi Goto, president of Fujifilm Holdings Corp., said, 'The future of tariff negotiations with the U.S. remains uncertain, and depending on the outcome, there could be a negative impact.' The majority of survey respondents also take a cautious view of the global economy. Sixty-one said the world economy is 'stagnant,' up 17 from the previous survey, while 18 believe the global economy is 'moderately decelerating.' Two companies said it was 'solidly decelerating,' compared with zero in the previous survey. Among the optimists, 15 companies feel the global economy is 'moderately expanding,' and one responded that it is 'solidly expanding.' Eighty companies said the biggest threat to the global economy is 'tariff action by the U.S. Trump administration.' And half of the 100 companies said they are concerned about the outlook for the U.S. economy. 'The uncertainty caused by the U.S. tariff policy is covering the entire world,' said Toru Nakashima, CEO of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group. 'Excessive pessimism is being corrected, but the economy remains unpredictable with significant downside risks.' Six companies cited 'the impact of international conflicts and terrorism in the Middle East and elsewhere' as a concern for the global economy.
Kyodo News
2 hours ago
- Kyodo News
China lifts ban on Japanese seafood imports imposed in 2023
KYODO NEWS - 5 hours ago - 12:15 | World, All China on Sunday lifted its ban on Japanese seafood imports imposed in August 2023 following the release into the sea of treated radioactive wastewater from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant. Beijing introduced the blanket ban in a demonstration of its strong opposition to the ocean discharge. The Asian neighbors agreed to begin procedures to resume Japanese seafood imports in May, but it may take a few months until shipments begin following the completion of procedural steps. The move apparently reflects China's interest in improving ties with Japan at a time when it is engaging in a trade war with the United States. Chinese customs authorities said in a public notice that long-term international monitoring of the water discharge and independent sampling by China "showed no abnormalities." On the premise that the Japanese government is committed to ensuring the quality and safety of seafood exports to China, Beijing has decided to "conditionally resume" imports, the authorities said. However, China will keep restrictions on food imports from 10 Japanese prefectures including Fukushima and Tokyo, which were imposed after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that triggered the nuclear disaster. For the resumption of China-bound seafood exports, Japanese facilities that process and preserve marine products must be registered, while the products must pass radiation checks. In September last year, the two governments agreed to gradually resume seafood trade on the condition that third-party countries monitor the water release from the nuclear plant. Following the agreement, China collected marine samples near the Fukushima plant under the framework of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
