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Prime Minister Suga responding to the House of Representatives Budget Committee
The House of Representatives Budget Committee was attended by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and all ministers on the 25th, and basic questions were asked about the 2020 Third Supplemental Budget. The Prime Minister refused to reorganize the budget required by the opposition, stating that about 1 trillion yen of spending related to the “Go To Travel” tourism support project, which had been suspended across the country, will “be accounted for when it resumes at the appropriate time.”
Junya Ogawa of the Constitutional Democratic Party noted that “it is unscrupulous that the Go To budget is included in the correction” in light of the serious spread of the new coronavirus infection. The prime minister stressed the need to “contribute to supporting the local economy.”
He said he was “targeting” the first half of this year when it comes to getting vaccines for the new crown. As for the timing of the procurement, after Undersecretary of State Manabu Sakai said he “hoped” to secure by June, Taro Kono, the minister in charge of administrative reform, denied it, causing confusion.
Mr. Kono announced that he will conduct a simulation on the timing and system required on the 27th of this month in the city of Kawasaki regarding vaccination with the goal of starting in late February.
◆ Cancellation of the statement “Less than 500 infected people, depending on the situation, such as hospital beds”
Yasutoshi Nishimura, Minister of Economic Revitalization, said of the criteria for canceling the state of emergency: “Even if the number of recently infected people in Tokyo falls below 500, it does not mean it will be lifted immediately.”
Hiroshi Moriyama from the Liberal Democratic Party and Jun Azumi, chairman of the Constitutional Democratic Party, met at the Diet on the 25th on the amendments to the Coronavirus Special Measures Law and the Infectious Diseases Law presented by the government to the Diet. It was agreed to start the bill amendment talks on the 26th.
The ruling party is considering lifting the imprisonment of those who refuse to be hospitalized in the amendment to the Infectious Disease Control Act. Based on consistency with the current law focused on criminal sanction, the review of the administrative sanction without a criminal record is negative.
The bill to reform the Special Measures Law is also prepared to respond flexibly to requests for a reduction in the maximum amount of fines. We will consider including the advance report to the Diet on priority measures such as prevention of spread in the incidental resolution at the time of the vote without amending the bill. Both will be based on the demands of the opposition party. (Mikihiko Ueno, Tetsuto Yamaguchi)
