Mainichi reported that a supra-partisan parliamentary league on LGBT rights held an executive meeting yesterday and affirmed their goal of passing the bill aimed at deepening understanding of sexual minorities by the time Prime Minister Kishida hosts the G7 Hiroshima Summit in mid-May. The caucus chairman, former Defense Minister Inada, expressed confidence that the bill will be enacted in May,….Read more

The following is an abstract of interpellations at the Lower House joint meeting of committees on financial affairs and national security on April 19, 2023:     Financial resources for defense spending   Shina Takeshi (Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan): Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has been saying he will raise taxes. But under the bill to secure financial resources, only some….Read more

On April 14, the Upper House passed by majority vote revisions to the Self-Defense Forces Establishment Law, which stipulates quotas of SDF personnel. With the enactment, the SDF will increase the size of a joint unit that is comprised of the GSDF, MSDF and ASDF to strengthen the SDF’s cyberdefense capability by 144 from fiscal 2022 to 1732 in fiscal….Read more

By Ichino Kai   On April 13, about 90 lawmakers participated in a ceremony to launch a suprapartisan league to achieve carbon neutrality.   The “suprapartisan group to realize carbon neutrality” aims to make proposals to the government and business circles on carbon neutrality, spearhead the drafting of related legislation, and promote exchange with their counterparts in other countries. The….Read more

Answers by the prime minister and cabinet ministers to Diet questions are not just the statements they make. Such answers are regarded as expressions of the government’s measures and policies and affect society and daily life. Isn’t the importance of these answers being forgotten?   Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura expressed his intention to use ChatGPT, a conversational….Read more

All national papers reported on the start of Diet deliberations on legislation to finance an increase in the defense budget on Thursday. While underscoring the importance of securing sustainable financial sources, Prime Minister Kishida said the GOJ has examined every possible tool to mitigate the burden on the people as much as possible. “As a result, we’ve managed to secure three-fourths….Read more

Tokyo, April 3 (Jiji Press)–Japan must clearly show the international community its stance of working to realize a society where diversity is respected, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Monday.     He made the remark at a meeting of the Audit Committee of the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of Japan’s parliament, referring to planned legislation to promote understanding for….Read more

Regarding issues that Japan is facing such as a declining population as well as a rapidly changing international situation, it can hardly be said that fruitful deliberations are being held in the current Diet session. The ruling and opposition parties need to be committed to engaging in policy-oriented debates.   The fiscal 2023 budget has been enacted, and with the….Read more