Japan's Takaichi: "I Don't Know Why Approval Ratings Are Falling"

[Financial News, Tokyo = Correspondent Seo Hye-jin] Sanae Takaichi, Prime Minister of Japan, said on the 27th that it was "hard to analyze the reasons for the decline" and that she "doesn't really know" why approval ratings for her cabinet have fallen sharply across major media polls.
According to Nikkei, Inc., Takaichi said at a House of Representatives of Japan budget committee intensive review that when asked why her cabinet approval ratings were falling, "It is difficult for me to analyze the reasons for the decline. I don't really know." She added, however, that "the policy-related questions in each poll are used as reference material to understand what the public thinks."
Opposition parties focused their criticism on the so-called "Honebuto shock," which emerged after a draft of the government's basic economic and fiscal policy guidelines, known as the Honebuto policy, was released last month. They argued that concerns the government was trying to interfere with BOJ monetary policy and keep interest rates low for an extended period had triggered a weaker Japanese yen and a sharp rise in long-term interest rates.
In response, Takaichi emphasized the central bank's independence, saying that "monetary policy is a matter the BOJ should decide, and policy tools are also left to the BOJ." She added that "raising Japan's international competitiveness is ultimately the way to strengthen confidence in the yen."
She also drew a line against calls to establish a new panel of experts to discuss whether queens or female-line empresses should be allowed under the recently enacted revised Imperial House Law.
She said, "I have no intention of setting up a new panel of experts right now," adding, "First, we need to prepare so that the revised Imperial House Law can be implemented without disruption."
On fiscal policy, she stressed that the key goal of fiscal management would be to steadily reduce the ratio of national debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In future budget drafting, the government plans to take market confidence into account, specify the annual issuance volume of government bonds, and secure fiscal sustainability.
Takaichi also said she is considering setting up a cabinet meeting to discuss heatstroke countermeasures, given the ongoing record-breaking heat. On a possible cut in the consumption tax, she said discussions are under way in a bipartisan council and replied, "I cannot say the conclusion in advance."
She also flatly denied allegations that her aide was involved in the virtual asset known as the "SANAE token," saying, "Neither I nor my office approved its issuance or trading, and I did not even know it existed."

[email protected] Seo Hye-jin Reporter