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2010/07/21
Hosono gives speech at FCCJ
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On July 21, DPJ Secretary General Goshi Hosono gave a speech at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan (FCCJ) regarding “The Prospects for the DPJ in the Wake of the House of Councillors Election”. Hosono said that the party recognized the importance of carrying out a review of the election, and was currently engaging in this, expressing the opinion that the so-called “twisted Diet” which had come about as a result of the election was “an opportunity to consider the state of the Diet and the parliamentary system.”
With regard to the ongoing election review, Hosono said that the party is considering various aspects, in particular: 1) whether the remarks made by party leader, Prime Minister Naoto Kan regarding raising the consumption tax had been rejected by the electorate or not, 2) whether the election served as a vote of confidence on the performance of the DPJ government itself, and 3) an evaluation of the House of Councillors Manifesto.
Hosono stressed that “This is a great opportunity for the Japanese people to come to understand the real meaning of a change of government.” He expressed a willingness to engage in a reduction of the number of Diet members, and as his own personal opinion, suggested that it would be valuable to establish a non-partisan discussion forum to consider the state of the Diet and the parliamentary system in Japan. Furthermore, he said that the DPJ would return to the party’s origins of “politics that values people”, and as well as expressing the desire to realize bold reforms that could not be achieved by past LDP administrations, he said that the DPJ “wished to discuss individual pieces of legislation thoroughly with the opposition parties.”
Following the speech, a lively question and answer session took place, with the assembled foreign media asking a variety of questions on such topics as Hosono’s analysis of electoral affairs in single-seat constituencies, the outlook for the forthcoming election for DPJ President, agricultural policy, and US bases in Japan
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