Japan's 150-day regular Diet session to begin on Jan 24

A 150-day regular session of Japan's parliament will begin on Jan 24, the top government spokesman said Tuesday, with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba set to seek opposition support in Diet deliberations ahead of a key upper house election.

If there is no extension, the session will end on June 22, setting the stage for the House of Councillors election scheduled for around July 20.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi notified ruling and opposition lawmakers in charge of Diet affairs of the schedule on Tuesday. Ishiba is expected to deliver a policy speech on the first day of the session.

Ishiba needs cross-party support to pass a draft budget plan worth a record 115.54 trillion yen for fiscal 2025 before the March 31 end of the current business year, along with other bills.

The ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and the Komeito party no longer hold a majority in the House of Representatives, the powerful lower house. They still control the upper house, though half of its seats will be contested in the forthcoming election.

Hayashi said the government will aim to build a consensus as much as possible, in consultation with opposition parties.

"We will explain what the government wants to do by engaging sincerely in Diet deliberations," he told a regular press briefing.

© KYODO