Lawmakers To Begin Session With Discussion Of LDP Political Funding Scandal

The afterwaves of the political funding scandal continue to rattle Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) as the Diet started its 150-day regular session today, setting the stage for a grilling of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida by opposition lawmakers.

• At the request of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP), parliament is expected to debate the political kickbacks affairs on Monday, one day before the Prime Minister delivers his policy speech. The session normally opens with the policy speech, but the LDP agreed to a schedule change.
• The scandal has shaken the LDP's well-entrenched faction system, which has organised internal politics since the 1950s. Earlier today, the intra-party "Tanigaki group" (not a faction) decided to dissolve itself, following a similar move by the Moriyama faction, even as none of them was involved in the scandal.
• During the upcoming parliamentary session, the government will be looking to submit a total of 58 bills. The most important one is the Y112.57tn budget bill for FY2024. The ruling coalition will seek its early passage to ensure swift implementation of measures to contain price hikes and rebuild the areas hit by the recent earthquake.