Abe Says Party Leaders’ One-on-One Debate Accomplishes Its Mission

June 28, 2018

Tokyo- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Wednesday that a one-on-one parliamentary debate between the prime minister and opposition leaders had accomplished its mission.

Abe, also president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, made the comments during his one-on-one talks with Yukio Edano, chief of the major opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.

The comments came after Edano himself recently said that the one-on-one debate between political party leaders had "completed its historical role."

There is a possibility that the one-on-one parliamentary debate, introduced in 2000, will be placed under review.

Opposition parties prefer budget committee meetings in both parliamentary chambers, where they have more time to question Abe and other government officials.

On Wednesday, Abe held one-on-one talks with five opposition leaders, the largest number ever, in a session that lasted some 45 minutes.

Edano pointed to seven areas of problems with the Abe administration. But Abe said he could not respond to all of them due to a lack of time.

Asked by Edano whether a bill that the LDP recently submitted to increase the number of House of Councillors seats by six will be able to win public support, Abe showed understanding of the measure.

"Demand for one representative in each prefecture is strong in regional areas. I believe the bill stems from a sense of responsibility for meeting the demand," Abe said.

Abe played down criticism from Kohei Otsuka, coleader of the Democratic Party for the People, of the government's plan to bring more foreign workers to Japan.

"Labor shortages are actually happening," Abe said, denying that the plan affects the country's employment situation.

The plan does not amount to accepting immigrants, Abe said. Accepting immigrants means accepting a certain number of foreigners and their families in proportion to the population for an indefinite period, he said. Jiji Press