Japan's newly elected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Tuesday that her government will draw up a stimulus package to address rising living costs.
Speaking at a press conference, Takaichi, who was elected Japan's first female minister earlier in the day, also ruled out an early dissolution of the House of Representatives for a snap election, saying her minority government will prioritize economic policies instead.
The 64-year-old new leader instructed ministers and officials at her first cabinet meeting to compile a stimulus package, a person familiar with the matter said.
She pledged to"swiftly" abolish the provisional gasoline tax rate and increase the nontaxable income threshold from the current 1.03 million yen by"listening to opposition parties' opinions."
The economic measures are intended to "boost people's net income and reduce households' burden," Takaichi said, adding that she will make every effort to ease the negative impacts of U.S. President Donald Trump's higher tariffs.
As her Liberal Democratic Party's coalition with its new partner, the Japan Innovation Party, lacks a majority in both houses of parliament, Takaichi, a staunch conservative, called on other parties to cooperate for political stability.
She said her government is willing to"flexibly" accept policy proposals from opposition parties unless they conflict with those of the LDP.
On the diplomatic front, Takaichi said she is looking forward to meeting with leaders from other countries at Association of Southeast Asian Nations-related meetings in Malaysia this weekend and an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit from late this month in South Korea.
Referring to Trump's visit to Japan, expected to take place next week, Takaichi said she hopes to build a deep relationship of trust with the U.S. president through candid exchanges of views.
Takaichi, known for her hawkish views on diplomacy and defense issues, also said that the government will start working on revisions of its key security documents, including the long-term policy guideline National Security Strategy.
Cabinet lineup
The following is the lineup of the cabinet formed by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Tuesday.
Notes: (F) denotes female ministers.
Internal Affairs and Communications Minister: Yoshimasa Hayashi, 64
Justice Minister: Hiroshi Hiraguchi, 77
Foreign Minister: Toshimitsu Motegi, 70
Finance Minister: Satsuki Katayama, 66 (F)
Defense Minister: Shinjiro Koizumi, 44
Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Minister: Yohei Matsumoto, 52
Health, Labor and Welfare Minister: Kenichiro Ueno, 60
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister: Norikazu Suzuki, 43
Economy, Trade and Industry Minister, minister for green transformation, minister in charge of industrial competitiveness, minister for the Nuclear Damage Compensation and Decommissioning Facilitation Corp: Ryosei Akazawa, 64
Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Minister: Yasushi Kaneko, 64
Environment Minister, minister for nuclear emergency preparedness: Hirotaka Ishihara, 61
Chief Cabinet Secretary, minister in charge of mitigating the impact of U.S. forces in Okinawa, minister in charge of the abduction issue: Minoru Kihara, 56
Digital Transformation Minister, minister in charge of digital administrative and fiscal reform, minister in charge of cybersecurity, minister in charge of administrative reform, minister in charge of the national civil service system, minister for cybersecurity: Hisashi Matsumoto, 63
Reconstruction Minister, minister in charge of comprehensive policy coordination for revival from the nuclear accident at Fukushima, minister in charge of the preparation of establishing the disaster management agency: Takao Makino, 66
Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission, minister in charge of territorial issues, minister for disaster management, minister for ocean policy: Jiro Akama, 57
Minister for Okinawa and Northern Territories affairs, minister for consumer affairs and food safety, minister for policies related to children, minister for measures for declining birthrate, minister for youth's empowerment, minister for gender equality, minister for regional revitalization, minister in charge of women's empowerment, minister in charge of cohesive society: Hitoshi Kikawada, 55
Minister in charge of Japan's growth strategy, Minister in charge of wage increases, minister in charge of startups, minister in charge of social security reform, minister in charge of infectious disease crisis management: Minoru Kiuchi, 60
Minister in charge of economic security, minister in charge of promoting society of well-ordered and harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals, minister for"cool Japan" strategy, minister for intellectual property strategy, minister for science and technology policy, minister for artificial intelligence strategy: Kimi Onoda, 42 (F)
© KYODO
