DPP Looms Up as a Key Actor

The Democratic Party for the People (DPP) appeared to play a key role in post-election politics in Japan. Receiving the result of general election of the House of Representatives, in which the leading coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito lost its majority, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba decided to discuss details about economic policies with DPP. Not willing to join the leading coalition, DPP would like to discuss their agenda with the LDP. 

Some LDP leaders revealed reporters that they were willing to include DPP’s economic policies, which they had upheld as campaign platform, in the comprehensive economic policy package in mid-November. The LDP hopes the DPP to vote for supplemental budget, which will include the package, and hopefully for Ishiba in the election for nominating next prime minister.

 

The DPP increased its seats in the House in the general election, raising from 7 to 28. If LDP-Komeito coalition could add at least 18 seats of DPP to their bloc, they can regain their majority in the House. The DPP leader, Yuichiro Tamaki, denied possibility of joining the leading coalition with sending a minister to Ishiba Cabinet. But he did not rule out a possibility of cooperating with LDP and Komeito over some economic policies they upheld.

 

The DPP firmly appeals necessity of raising threshold of paying income tax for salary workers. While a worker with annual income of 1.03 million yen or more needs to pay income tax, the DPP require raising that line from to 1.78 million yen so that more people can escape the taxation. Another policy important for the DPP is defrosting “trigger clause” in gasoline tax. The clause is set to activate reduction of tax rate, when gasoline price abruptly rises.

 

The LDP is considering raising threshold of 1.03 million yen for income tax, which can be aligned with LDP’s economic policy aimed at raising real income of the people. Meanwhile, the Constitutional Democratic Party also expects cooperation of the DPP in the PM nomination election and some policies. The DPP seems to have achieved casting votes between the leading coalition and opposition parties.

 

The DPP was established when the Democratic Party was divided to CDP and DPP in 2017. Former staff of the Ministry of Finance, Tamaki is known as an expert of economic policy, who insisted on the slogan of “raise net income of household” in the campaign of general election. DPP’s campaign strategy focusing on sending message through webpage attracted young voters, marking the most views among the parties except the LDP.

 

There is a discussion among the opposition parties to hold Tamaki as a possible candidate for the prime minister in nominative election in both Houses. Even some lawmakers of LDP referred to a possibility of nominating Tamaki for the prime minister, as a bargaining of including the DPP in their coalition. Tamaki only says that he will write his name on the ballot in the election.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Amendment of Local Autonomy Law

The House of Representatives started discussion on revision of the Local Autonomy Law, which would vest the national government a power to instruct local government in an emergency. It may change the relationship between the national and local government, which has been recognized as equal. The opposition parties oppose the amendment, arguing that it would give the national government an excessive power.   With the Meiji Restoration, the national government abolished the feudal system, introducing modern governance. However, its autonomy was not sufficient. The governor of each prefecture was appointed by the national government. The local governments subordinated to the national government. It was as late as 2000 when  the Comprehensive Decentralization Law  was enacted and the relationship between the national and local government was defined as equal.   The national government found inconvenience in the relationship between the national and local government, when COVID-19 was preval
Read more

Request for Final Nuclear Disposal Site

Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry requested Genkai Town, Saga, to accept “literature survey” for building a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste. Genkai is going to answer within this month. If it accepts, it will be the third place to accept that survey, following two places in Hokkaido. Main reason to accept the survey is supposed to be subsidy from the national government.   Japan has no final disposal site. Among all 54 reactors in 17 nuclear power generation plant, 12 reactors of 6 plants are operating. The rest of them are not in operation, some of which are determined to be decommissioned. Used nuclear fuels are stocked in each plant, 　 or have sent to a reprocessing plant in Rokkasho, Aomori. There are two plans to stock nuclear wastes in the intermediate facility for disposal, one is already built and another is still in negotiation.   Nuclear Fuel Final Disposal Act in 2000 determines to bury nuclear waste in the underground. Literature survey, which is
Read more

Death Penalty Demanded on Criminal of Arson

On the historically brutal case of arson, the public prosecutors demanded an ultimate penalty to the offender. In the trial on the arson and murder in Kyoto Animation in 2019, the prosecutors requested death penalty on the defendant, Shinji Aoba. The lawyers of Aoba argued that the court should avoid sentencing death penalty. The judgement will be passed next January. Aoba was indicted as putting fire after pouring gasoline in the building of Kyoto Animation (Kyoani), a studio producing animation works, and killed 36 staffs and injured 32 on July 18 th , 2019. In the trial, Aoba argued that he could not tolerate Kyoani, because it had stolen his novel story in its works. Aoba later apologized to the victim’s families that he had done too much and regretted it.   In the closing argument in Kyoto Regional Court, the prosecutors demanded death penalty for Aoba, because the number of victims were extremely high in the history of criminal trials in Japan. “It is hard to describe about how t
Read more