Japan Govt Budget Likely to Be Enacted as Early as Tuesday

Tokyo, April 3 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government’s fiscal 2026 budget is expected to be enacted as early as Tuesday as the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of the Diet, the country’s parliament, is now likely to pass it. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, hold 120 seats together in the Upper House, four fewer than a majority. The House of Representatives, the lower chamber, already approved the budget last month. The LDP has secured an agreement with two Upper House lawmakers from the opposition Conservative Party of Japan to cooperate in passing the budget in exchange for launching discussions on policies on foreign nationals. Several senior LDP officials said that three independent Upper House lawmakers, including Kenichiro Saito, have agreed to vote for the budget. Their support will bring the number of Upper House members in favor of the budget to 125. The LDP is also continuing to call for cooperation from another opposition party, Team Mirai. Team Mirai leader Takahiro Anno said that his party may vote for the budget if the LDP makes compromises on policies. The Upper House Budget Committee is scheduled to hold its second round of intensive deliberations on the budget on Monday. The ruling bloc is looking to get the budget through the Upper House on Tuesday, but opposition parties have called for four rounds of intensive deliberations. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]