LDP-Nippon Ishin Coalition Talks Expected to Reach Agreement Mon.

Osaka, Oct. 19 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party and Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party), which are aiming to form a coalition government, are expected to exchange policy agreement documents at a leaders’ meeting on Monday, informed sources said Sunday. This would pave the way for LDP President Sanae Takaichi to be elected as the new prime minister on the following day. Nippon Ishin is considering the option of not sending ministers to the new cabinet, according to the sources. Instead, the party is mulling supporting the LDP from outside the cabinet in the running of the Diet, Japan’s parliament, and other areas. On Sunday, Nippon Ishin held an executive meeting at the party’s headquarters in the western Japan city of Osaka to discuss the proposed establishment of a coalition government with the LDP. At the meeting, no objections were raised, and the handling of the matter was entrusted to party chief Hirofumi Yoshimura and other top executives. After the meeting, Nippon Ishin co-leader Fumitake Fujita said, “There was not a single cautious, opposing or critical opinion.” He emphasized that the relationship of trust between his party and the LDP is growing stronger and that related details will be finalized ahead of the leaders’ meeting on Monday. The results of discussions with the LDP will be reported at a meeting of Nippon Ishin lawmakers on Monday, where Nippon Ishin’s stance on the proposed coalition will be confirmed. Takaichi has proposed cabinet posts for Nippon Ishin, hoping to strengthen the foundation of her new administration. Within Nippon Ishin, however, the dominant view is that even if policy agreements are reached with the LDP, it would be necessary to assess implementation progress, thus advocating for cooperation from outside the cabinet. Former Nippon Ishin leader Nobuyuki Baba said after Sunday’s party executive meeting that cooperation from outside the cabinet would be preferable. He clarified that no opinions advocating the option of cooperation by sending ministers to the new cabinet were raised. The LDP and Nippon Ishin held policy talks between their leaders on Thursday and Friday with the aim of forming a coalition government. A reduction in the number of Diet members demanded by Nippon Ishin became the main focus. The LDP plans to accept this demand and discussions are continuing on the timing and scale of the reduction. Yoshimura has been calling for reducing the number of seats in the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the Diet, by about 50, equivalent to roughly 10 pct of the current total of 465 seats and has been seeking the implementation of the reduction within the year. Japan’s ruling and opposition parties have basically agreed to hold a parliamentary vote to appoint a new prime minister to succeed Shigeru Ishiba on Tuesday, the first day of a planned extraordinary Diet session. Takaichi is expected to appoint Nippon Ishin parliamentary affairs chief Takashi Endo as a special adviser to the prime minister upon the formation of the new cabinet. Endo has strong connections with the LDP and maintains broad networks across opposition parties. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]