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The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) and the Japan Restoration Party (JRP), which are eligible to forward their representatives as board members to the House of Representatives committees, held a meeting of the parties’ Secretaries General and Diet Affairs Committee Chairs on January 25. Secretary General Goshi Hosono and Diet Affairs Committee Chair Yoshiaki Takaki attended the meeting from the DPJ side.
After the meeting, Hosono stated that “Both parties share a common understanding that we have 111 seats of the House of Representatives in total, which is roughly the minimum number of seats needed to take on the Government and the ruling parties, based on our experiences in the Diet. With fewer seats, it would be hard to keep the Government and ruling parties in check and to have fulfilling discussions. As the two main opposition parties, we have jointly recognized the importance of cooperation today.” He also expressed his intention to establish similar cooperative relationships for addressing individual policies.
Hosono noted that both parties were concerned about the return of financial resources exclusively earmarked for road construction by the Liberal Democratic Party. He criticized the idea, stating, “I was truly astonished by the idea of once again earmarking revenue for road construction at this time. I find it incredible that someone would think of reinstating such an outdated policy as part of the tax reforms.” Furthermore, he stressed the need to thoroughly discuss the issue in the Diet sessions.
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