According to the NHK public opinion survey [for the month of June], those opposed to the Integrated Resorts (IR) Implementation Bill, which would allow casinos to be set up in Japan, exceeded those in favor of this bill, 38% to 16%. Some 36% said they “can’t say either way.” The government and ruling parties aim to enact the IR legislation during the current Diet session, but the opposition parties are saying they will not agree to hasty passage of the bill.

The nationwide survey was conducted by NHK from June 8 over three days on a computer-aided random digit dialing (RDD) basis and targeted men and women aged 18 or over with calls placed to landline and mobile phone numbers. Valid responses were received from 1,218 of the 2,159 people polled. The valid response rate was 56%.

The work-style reform bill is now being deliberated in the Upper House. The bill exempts certain high-income, highly specialized professionals from work-hour regulations, while also setting ceilings for overtime work hours. The ruling parties claim that the bill will foster diverse work styles, while the opposition parties are opposed to the bill, saying it will lead to long work hours. Some 14% of pollees said they are in favor of the bill while 32% said they are opposed and 44% said they “can’t say either way.”

To rectify the disparity in the value of a single vote in Upper House elections, the Liberal Democratic Party plans to submit to the Diet a bill to revise the [Public Offices Election Law] to raise the number of seats in the Upper House by six and create a “special category” for some of the proportional representation seats where the ranking of candidates would be set in advance. Some 9% of pollees said they are in favor of the bill while 34% said they are opposed and 43% said they “can’t say either way.”