LDP, JAPAN INNOVATION PARTY STRIKE POLICY DEAL TO FORM COALITION

TOKYO, Oct 18 (Bernama-Kyodo) -- Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the major opposition Japan Innovation Party (JIP) have agreed to form a coalition, with the JIP to offer support from outside the Cabinet, senior officials from both parties said on Saturday, Kyodo News reported.

JIP leader Hirofumi Yoshimura and LDP chief Sanae Takaichi are expected to sign a coalition agreement on Monday. The move marks a new phase in Japan’s multiparty politics following the Komeito party’s departure from its 26-year alliance with the LDP.

With the JIP planning to vote for Takaichi — elected LDP president on Oct 4 — in Tuesday’s parliamentary vote to select the next prime minister, her election, which would make her Japan’s first female premier, is virtually assured.

However, she is set to face a rocky road ahead in advancing her largely conservative policies, as her government would still fall short of a majority of 233 in the powerful 465-member House of Representatives, even after the LDP and JIP join hands.

Days after centrist Komeito, which refers to itself as a “peace party”, decided to quit the coalition with the LDP, Takaichi and Yoshimura — who also serves as Osaka governor — pledged Wednesday to begin policy talks with the possibility of forming a new government.

Senior officials from the two parties agreed Friday in Tokyo that the LDP would work to realise the JIP’s proposals to lower the consumption tax rate on food to zero from the current level of up to 10 per cent and to abolish corporate and organisational donations.

The LDP also accepted Yoshimura’s demand to cut the number of Diet seats, which he has described as a “non-negotiable condition” for entering the coalition. The parties plan to submit a related bill to the extraordinary parliamentary session to be convened on Tuesday.

At their first policy meeting, Takaichi invited the JIP to join the Cabinet. However, some JIP lawmakers said it would be better to wait until policy progress becomes clear, making it unlikely the party will take Cabinet posts beyond an advisory role to the prime minister.

The two parties will set up a consultative body to carry out the coalition deal. As part of the ruling bloc, the JIP will participate in prior discussions on government bills, with Yoshimura saying the goal is to implement policies rather than seek Cabinet positions.

On the issue of reducing the consumption tax on food to zero, the LDP and JIP confirmed that they will continue talks while aiming to end corporate and organisational donations by September 2027, when Takaichi’s tenure as party president expires.

The LDP has entrusted Takaichi with handling the coalition matter, while the JIP will hold an executive board meeting in Osaka on Sunday and a plenary session of lawmakers the following day before giving final approval to the agreement with the LDP.

In the lower house, the LDP holds 196 seats, the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDPJ) 148, the JIP 35, and Komeito 24. If the LDP — the largest force in parliament — and the JIP form a coalition, their combined seats would total 231.

The CDPJ is arranging to support its leader, Yoshihiko Noda, a former prime minister. Even if a runoff is held in the Diet’s prime ministerial vote between the top two candidates, Takaichi is expected to win, as other parties apparently plan to back their own leaders.

Komeito, supported by Japan’s largest lay Buddhist organisation, Soka Gakkai, whose membership has declined amid an ageing population, has criticised the LDP over its high-profile slush fund scandal, which has eroded the ruling camp’s popularity across the board.

-- BERNAMA-KYODO