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>>> INDEX <<<
A> Not Choosing the Bureaucrats
B> This Week’s “Nagata-cho”
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◎ Not Choosing the Bureaucrats
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There was an interesting article in Wall Street Journal on April 11th
titled “In Crisis, Kan bypassed bureaucrats.”
It introduced the criticism that the Prime Minister Kan distrusts the
bureaucrats and tossed aside the traditional disaster-response system,
as well as the praise by others that Mr. Kan sidestepped the
bureaucratic channels and created his own emergency-response body to
direct orders.
Indeed, the problem is the cozy relationship between Ministry of
Economy, Industry and Trade and Tokyo Electric Power Co., which is the
typical example of the economic term “Regulatory Capture.” Tepco
receives amakudari from METI in exchange for that the Nuclear and
Industrial Safety Agency, which is one of the internal organizations
of METI, softens the regulations over Tepco.
Still, it is questionable that Mr. Kan, distrusting both Tepco and
METI, sticks with his ad hoc responses while jettisoning the rules and
procedures prepared for emergency situations.
In the Cabinet, normally information comes through the secretaries
dispatched from the ministries. On emergent matters the secretary
tells the first report and the person in charge from the ministry
tells the rest. Anyways, the secretary is the key informant.
Mr. Kan’s secretaries are, besides the parliamentary secretary from
the DPJ, dispatched from Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare,
Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, METI, and National
Police Agency. Formally they are transferred to the Cabinet Office,
but in fact they are assured to go back to the former places when the
prime minister leaves his office. In a sense, their bosses are the
seniors in the ministries, not the prime minister.
In this regard, it is understandable that the Prime Minister Kan
doesn’t believe the information from such officials. However, the
problem is that he doesn’t have aide officials who truly work for him,
not for the ministries which they would go back some day. No matter
how much Mr. Kan tries to get information from his own staffs, this
could be no better than using the country’s well-worn bureaucratic
channels. If he wanted to govern in a new way, he should have chosen
proper officials who are not on loan from the ministries.
If there were such officials in the Prime Minister’s office whose
loyalties are not to the ministries, they could be the channel between
the ministries and the outside staffs. Appropriate decision making
cannot be expected as long as the wheels are revolving separately from
each other.
（Ｔ）
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◎This Week’s “Nagata-cho”
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The first supplementary budget planned to meet the damages by the
Great East Japan Disaster was submitted by the government to the Diet
on Apr. 28th, and the parties deliberated over that during the
holidays from 29th. As the result, it went through the House of
Representatives on the 30th and passed the House of Councilors
unanimously on May 2nd. Likewise, the disaster-related bills started
to take effect when on 27-28th the temporary tax exemption bill, the
revised local tax bill, the national proxy bill for rehabilitation
activities, and exemption bill for building restriction passed the
Diet. On May 2nd the Diet passed the special measure bills to secure
the national budget, subsidy to the damaged municipalities, and exempt
the social insurance fees to the victims.
The opposing parties like the LDP are prepared to confront the
ruling Democratic party. They strongly criticized the Prime Minister
and other Ministers for that the delayed initial responses and the
late countermeasures after the disaster and the leak of
radioactive-contaminated water are losing the country’s international
reputation, in the Budget Committee and the Audit Committee of the
House of Councilors on 25th, and the Budget Committee of the House of
Representatives on 26th. Also, they questioned the Ministers and the
summoned persons (Mr. Kondo, the chairman of Japan Atomic Energy
Commission and Mr. Madarame, the chairman of Nuclear Safety
Commission of Japan) harshly in the Audit and the Oversight of
Administration Committees of the House of Representatives and in the
joint examining-committee by the METI and the Cabinet Office on 27th
over the Fukushima Daiichi incident.
*The state of the deliberation in both Houses and committees can be
seen from the following websites.
House of Representatives Internet TV：http://www.shugiintv.go.jp/en/index.php
Live broadcasts and video recordings of the deliberations in the
House of Councillors (Japanese only)：http://www.webtv.sangiin.go.jp/
The government is planning to propose the Basic Act on Reconstruction,
sketching the basic plan and the organizational orders toward the
rehabilitation and reconstruction after the Great East Japan
Earthquake, to the Diet after the weekend. The Act explicitly
announces to conclude within a year the debates over the
organizational design of the agency which propels the reconstruction
policy comprehensively which the parties have apart ideas (the DPJ’s
“Reconstruction Agency”, Kokumin Party’s “Head Office for
Reconstruction Operation”, the LDP’s “Board of Reconstruction and
Restoration”, and so forth). From this prolongation, the DPJ seems to
want to find a point of compromise with the LDP.
The 2nd supplementary budget is planned to be drawn up in July after
the suggestions from Japan’s Reconstruction Design Council and the
proposals for the total reform on social security and tax. Unlike the
1st supplementary budget that was for the early rehabilitation, the
2nd supplementary budget will deal with the full-scale reconstruction
of approximately \10 trillion. This implies that the source of revenue
for the 2nd supplementary budget will be the disputable point for the
meantime, including the special bond which is yet to be agreed on.
On 29th, the DPJ signed a framework agreement on the finance for
reconstruction with the LDP and Komeito. Mr. Kan and the executives of
the DPJ seek to compromise with the opposing parties by announcing to
reconsider the party manifesto like the child allowance, in order to
obtain agreements to issue the reconstruction bond. Nonetheless, it is
unclear how far the DPJ can do, as there are not only the repulsive
voices against changing such catchword policies, but also the
movements to demand the resignation of the Prime Minister from inside
the party. Indeed, the LDP is said to be preparing for such scenario,
because they will be able to attack the Prime Minister using the
three-cornered agreement as the hostage in case the DPJ fails to
revise its own special-feature policy such as the child allowance.
The opposing parties are likely to go on the offensive, including
using the no-confidence or reprimand vote against the Cabinet. And
inside the party, too, the movements to remove Mr. Kan will be more
active. In such political situation, it is important to watch how the
deliberation over the bills and the preparation for the 2nd
supplementary budget will progress after the weekends.
Below is the list of the deliberated matters in the Diet last week.
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■Deliberated Policies
As of May 2nd (Mon.) based on the website of the House of
Representatives（http://www.shugiin.go.jp/index.nsf/html/index_gian.htm）
*The links include Japanese websites only.
【Disaster-related】
○Apr.25th, the Cabinet ”bill on the temporary tax exemption measure
on the victims of the Great East Japan Disaster” referred to the
committee on financial affairs, House of Councilors, approved by the
committee on 26th, approved on 27th.
The content：http://www.mof.go.jp/about_mof/bills/177diet/index.htm
LDP and Komeito “counterproposal to the bill on the temporary tax
exemption measure on the victims of the Great East Japan Disaster”
rejected
The content：http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/kousei/gian/177/pdf/h031770571770010.pdf
○Apr. 25th, the Cabinet “bill on the partial revision on the local
taxation act” referred to the general affairs committee, House of
Councilors, approved by the committee on 26th, approved on 27th.
The content：http://www.soumu.go.jp/menu_hourei/k_houan.html
Your Party “counterproposal to the bill on the partial revision on
the local taxation act” rejected
The content：http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/kousei/gian/177/pdf/h031770581770010.pdf
○Apr 26th, the Cabinet “bill on the national proxy of the
rehabilitation of the public facilities damaged by the Great East
Japan Earthquake” referred to the land and transport committee,
House of Representatives, approved on 28th
The content：http://www.mlit.go.jp/report/press/river03_hh_000324.html
○Apr 26th, the Cabinet ”bill on the exception for the building
restriction in urban areas damaged by the Great East Japan
Earthquake” referred to the land and transport committee, House of
Representatives, approved on 28th
The content：http://www.mlit.go.jp/report/press/house05_hh_000240.html
○Apr. 26th, the Cabinet “bill on the special allowance and subsidy
measures for Great East Japan Earthquake” passed the House of
Representatives on 30th, referred to the disaster committee, House
of Councilors on May 1st, approved on 2nd.
The content：http://www.bousai.go.jp/oshirase/h23/110426-1kisya.pdf
○Apr 26th, the Cabinet “bill on the special measures on the total
amount of subsidies to the local governments 2011” passed the House
of Representatives on 30th, referred to the general affairs
committee, House of Councilors on May 1st, approved on 2nd.
The content：http://www.soumu.go.jp/menu_hourei/k_houan.html
○Apr 26th, the Cabinet “bill on the special measures for the land
improvement as countermeasure to Great East Japan Earthquake”
passed the House of Representatives on 30th, referred to the
committee on agriculture, forestry and fishery on May 1st, approved
on 2nd.
○Apr. 26th, the Cabinet “bill on the special measures on the
election of the committee on the coordination of marine zones and
agricultural commission” passed the House of Representatives on
30th, referred to the committee on agriculture, forestry and fishery,
House of Councilors on May 1st, approved on 2nd.
○Apr 28th, the Cabinet “bill on the special measures to secure the
financial resource to cope with the Great East Japan Earthquake”
passed the House of Representatives on 30th, referred to the
committee on the financial affairs, House of Councilors on May 1st,
approved on 2nd.
The content：http://www.mof.go.jp/about_mof/bills/177diet/index.htm
【Finance】
○Apr. 28th, the Cabinet “bill on the special measures on the
issuance of government bond 2011” the government’s request to
amend the bill was approved in the House of Representatives
The content：http://www.mof.go.jp/about_mof/bills/177diet/index.htm
【Monetary】
○Apr. 25th, the Cabinet “bill to amend the Act on the prevention of
money laundering of the profit earned by criminal actions” approved
by the cabinet committee, House of Councilors on 26th, approved on
27th.
The content：http://www.npa.go.jp/sosikihanzai/jafic/index.htm
○Apr. 25th, the Cabinet “bill on the privatization of Japan Bank of
International Cooperation” referred to the committee on the
financial affairs, House of Councilors, approved on 28th.
The content：http://www.mof.go.jp/houan/177/houan.htm
○Apr. 27th, the Cabinet “bill to amend the Act on the sales of
monetary goods to strengthen the financial market and financial
industry” partly revised and approved in the House of Councilors,
referred to the House of Representatives
The original content：http://www.fsa.go.jp/common/diet/index.html
The revised content：http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/kousei/gian/177/pdf/53177441.pdf
○Apr. 27th, the Cabinet “bill to amend the Deposit Insurance Act”
referred to the committee on financial affairs, House of Councilors
The content：http://www.fsa.go.jp/common/diet/index.html
【Industry】
○Apr. 27th, the Cabinet “bill to amend the Special Act on the
restoration of the industrial vitality and innovation” revised and
approved in the committee on economy and industry, passed the House
of Representatives on 28th.
The original content：http://www.chusho.meti.go.jp/keiei/saisei/2011/110210Kaisei.htm
The revised content：http://www.shugiin.go.jp/index.nsf/html/index_gian.htm
【Employment, Labor】
○Apr. 27th, the Cabinet “bill related to the employment support for
job hunters by vocational training” revised and approved by the
committee on heath and labor, House of Representatives, passed the
House of Representatives on 28th.
The original content：http://www.mhlw.go.jp/topics/bukyoku/soumu/houritu/177.html
The revised content：http://www.shugiin.go.jp/index.nsf/html/index_gian.htm
○Apr. 27th, the Cabinet “bill to amend the Act on the levy on the
employment insurance and insurance fee” approved by the committee
on health labor, and passed the House of Representatives on 28th.
The content：http://www.mhlw.go.jp/topics/bukyoku/soumu/houritu/177.html
【Region】
○Apr. 25th, the Cabinet “bill on the related legislations to promote
the local sovereignty reforms” referred to the committee on general
affairs, passed on 28th.
The content：http://www.cao.go.jp/houan/174/index.html
The revised content：http://www.shugiin.go.jp/index.nsf/html/index_gian.htm
LDP “counterproposal to the bill on the related legislations to
promote the local sovereignty reforms” rejected
The content：http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/kousei/gian/177/pdf/h031740561740010.pdf
Komeito “counterproposal the bill on the related legislations to
promote the local sovereignty reforms” rejected
The content：http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/kousei/gian/177/pdf/h031740561740020.pdf
○Apr. 25th, the Cabinet “bill on the arena for consultation between
the national and local governments” referred to the committee on
general affairs, House of Councilors, passed on 28th.
The content：http://www.cao.go.jp/houan/174/index.html
The revised content：http://www.shugiin.go.jp/index.nsf/html/index_gian.htm
LDP “counterproposal to the bill on the arena for consultation
between the national and local governments” rejected
The content：http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/kousei/gian/177/pdf/h031740571740010.pdf
Komeito “counterproposal to the bill on the arena for consultation
between the national and local governments” rejected
The content：http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/kousei/gian/177/pdf/h031740571740020.pdf
○Apr. 25th, the Cabinet “bill to amend the part of the Local
Autonomy Act” referred to the committee on general affairs, House
of Councilors, passed on 28th.
The content：http://www.soumu.go.jp/menu_hourei/k_houan.html
The revised content：http://www.shugiin.go.jp/index.nsf/html/index_gian.htm
【Housing】
○Apr. 25th, the Cabinet “bill to amend the Act on securing the
housing for elderly population” referred to the committee on land
and transportation, House of Councilors, approved by the committee
on 26th, passed on 27th.
The content：http://www.mlit.go.jp/policy/file000003.html
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（Ｋ）
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【Publisher】Public Policy Planning and Consulting Co.(SEISAKU-KOUBOU)
President Eiji HARA
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