Â鶹´«Ã½

Tag - ldp

 
Â鶹´«Ã½
Search
 
August 11, 2026
 

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

LDP

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi may seek to reinforce her standing in the Liberal Democratic Party by reshuffling her Cabinet and party executive lineup as early as next month.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 9, 2026
LDP secretary-general post emerges as focal point as Takaichi mulls changes
At a time when public support for her administration is falling, Takaichi may shake up her Cabinet and the LDP¡¯s executive lineup to reinforce her standing in the party.
Despite months of debate, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi failed to gain consensus within the Liberal Democratic Party on a two-year reduction of the consumption tax.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Aug 7, 2026
Will Takaichi¡¯s consumption tax cut break the LDP?
Debate on the consumption tax debate has become a test of party cohesion for the LDP under the prime minister¡¯s leadership.
Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa (center) and Komeito leader Toshiko Takeya (right) at a ceremony to mark 81 years since the atomic bombing of Hiroshima on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 6, 2026
Opposition leaders voice concerns over Takaichi¡¯s Hiroshima address
Yuichiro Tamaki, head of the Democratic Party for the People, pointed out that Takaichi ¡°just reiterated the government¡¯s long-standing policy.¡±
Sanae Takaichi campaigns alongside Koichi Hagiuda ahead of the Lower House election, in Tokyo in October 2024.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 6, 2026
Senior LDP official points to Abe-era lessons for Takaichi
Party heavyweight Koichi Hagiuda says the prime minister¡¯s administration lacks the discipline that characterized her political mentor¡¯s approach.
Former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 6, 2026
Kishida sees growth strategy as game changer for yen
Â鶹´«Ã½ 14-year strategy aims to generate an annual average of more than ?26 trillion in domestic investment.
The effort to cut consumption tax on food has created a rift between Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and several senior members of her own party who are openly critical of the plan.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 5, 2026
Takaichi¡¯s Cabinet approves consumption tax cut on food
While the majority of the Liberal Democratic Party endorsed the cut, some party veterans opposed lowering the tax rate, fearing it will lead to economic and political chaos.
Members of the Liberal Democratic Party's tax and social security panels hold a meeting on Monday to discuss a consumption tax cut.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 3, 2026
LDP members worry about two-year tax cut¡¯s impact on 2028 poll
Under the plan, the consumption tax rate on food will be lowered to 1% for two years from next April.
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the opposition Democratic Party for the People, speaks at a meeting with supporters in the city of Wakayama on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 3, 2026
Opposition DPP not to join ruling bloc for now, citing consumption tax cut
Some in the LDP sought to realize the DPP¡¯s participation before an extraordinary session of parliament is convened possibly this autumn.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announces a plan to lower the consumption tax rate on food items at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on July 30.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 2, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½ politically sensitive consumption tax faces first-ever cut
Takaichi has championed a proposal to lower the tax rate on food purchased at stores, which would mark the first cut to the rate since it was implemented in 1989.
Prime minister Sanae Takaichi addresses a budget committee session in the Lower House of parliament in Tokyo on Monday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 31, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½ ¡®Iron Lady¡¯ may need to bend, not break
Most Japanese prime ministers go through this pattern of early inflated expectations, followed by a crash as fatigue sets in, along with the realities of passing legislation.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a meeting with Liberal Democratic Party executives at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 30, 2026
Takaichi announces plan to lower consumption tax rate on food to 1%
The decision comes despite opposition party criticism and concerns among fellow LDP members about how lost revenue ¡ª ?5 trillion annually ¡ª from the reduction would be covered.
With the parliamentary session over, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi now finds herself under pressure to do something about the rising cost of living.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 30, 2026
Takaichi¡¯s popularity slide exposes deeper governing challenges
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi¡¯s drop raises the question of whether it is from the normal growing pains of a new administration or if it indicates deeper structural problems.
Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Itsunori Onodera, who chairs the National Council, speaks in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 29, 2026
Takaichi finalizing plan to cut consumption tax rate on food products
The prime minister is expected to make a formal decision on the matter as early as Thursday.
Liberal Democratic Party executives meet in Tokyo on July 13.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 28, 2026
LDP eyes new tools to counter foreign spies and disinformation
The ruling party¡¯s policy panel proposes new laws against illicit foreign interference, broader intelligence-gathering powers and an independent foreign intelligence agency.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks in a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 28, 2026
PM stands firm on LDP-JIP ties and notes public concern over foreign influx
Despite growing speculation that Takaichi is planning to reshuffle her Cabinet before the fall Diet session, she said there is nothing to comment on at this point of time.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a budget committee session at the Lower House in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 27, 2026
After a legislative sweep, Takaichi faces public confidence test
A recent poll shows 71% of respondents disapproved of the government¡¯s response to rising living costs as talks remain stalled over a reduction of the consumption tax for food.
The Upper House passes a bill to create a secondary capital for Japan, after a last-minute showdown between the ruling and opposition camps, with 123 votes in favor and 121 against at parliament in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 26, 2026
Secondary capital bill passes after showdown at parliament
The legislation¡¯s passage ended a week of intense debate and cleared the way for parliament to end Saturday after 158 days.
An Upper House joint committee discusses a backup capital bill in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 24, 2026
Lawmakers remain divided on secondary capital, with talks of further extension
As the LDP considers its options, an opposition party leader has threatened a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Sanae Takachi¡¯s government.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a joint meeting of committees from both houses of Parliament on fundamental national policies in Tokyo on July 15.
EDITORIALS
Jul 24, 2026
To succeed, the prime minister must get back to basics
The ruling coalition does not have the communication channels and coordination mechanisms that facilitate cooperation and success.
An Upper House committee discusses a bill on the establishment of a secondary capital, in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 23, 2026
JIP¡¯s priorities take center stage even as household relief stalls
The Liberal Democratic Party no longer finds itself strictly needing the Japan Innovation Party¡¯s support, yet the latter¡¯s priorities continue to shape the parliamentary agenda.
America¡¯s cyberforces grapple with cluster of deaths by suicide
The U.S. Cyber Command building (center) stands on the National Security Agency campus at Fort Meade, Maryland.
Many Indonesians named after Japanese anime characters
Some people in Indonesia are named Doraemon, the name of a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title.
Yasukuni Shrine introduces ban on military attire and cosplay
People gather in front of thousands of lanterns on display at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on July 15 during the Mitama Matsuri, one of the capital's largest summer o-Bon festivals.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
At Smoke Craft, a craft beer brewery in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, music isn't just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it's an ingredient.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
J. League enters new era as league kicks off first fall-spring campaign
Players from each J. League club pose during a kickoff event on Monday ahead of the start of the 2026-27 campaign.
Speaking Japanese at the movies with ¡®Chiikawa¡¯
A "Chiikawa The Movie" poster is seen at Toho Cinemas in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER