Zero consumption tax on food products” is a deadlock…Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi: “There is no way to deal with high prices” – A “lonely empress” staring into the void

No breakthrough in sight

Staring blankly into the void with a vacant expression, Sanae Takaichi, 65, the prime minister of Japan, appeared fatigued when she appeared before the Health, Labor, and Welfare Committee of the House of Representatives on April 24. April 21 marked six months since the inauguration of the Takaichi Cabinet, and there is still a mountain of issues to be addressed.

The high cost of living, which is the biggest concern, has not been halted. The consumer price index in March started to rise again, although it was slowing down for a while thanks to the abolition of the provisional gasoline tax rate and subsidies for electricity and gas, which were promoted under the Ishiba administration. Utility bills are likely to rise further. Urgent measures are required.

However, it is difficult to say that Mr. Takaichi has been able to present concrete measures. He has also launched a national council to study the issue of “zero consumption tax on foodstuffs by the end of this fiscal year,” which he himself has stated as his “long-cherished wish,” but there is no roadmap to agreement in sight. Journalist Tetsuo Suzuki asserts, “The level of seriousness is not being conveyed.

According to the minutes of the National Council, 80% of the discussions are related to the tax credit with benefits, and not mainly to tax reduction. The National Diet should have discussed the issue directly instead of going through the National Diet, which only aims to reach a consensus. Now that they have overwhelming numerical strength, they should be able to push through if they really wanted to, but they are not taking that step. Mr. Takaichi’s attitude shows no sign of his determination to accomplish what he set out to do.

For some time, Mr. Takaichi has cited “the time required to change the specifications of the cash registers” as the biggest obstacle to reducing consumption taxes. A reduction to a 1% consumption tax, which would be easy to change and could be implemented in a few months, has begun to be considered, but its realization, too, is uncertain. Jun Kitajima, a professor of political science at the Graduate University of Social Design and Management, says, “The Takaichi administration has been able to maintain a high approval rating, but the consumption tax rate is still high.

The Takaichi administration has maintained a high approval rating, and there will be no national election until the House of Councillors election in the summer of 2008, so there is no need to force the government into cutting taxes. It can be used as a trump card in case the support rate declines. Even if the problem of the cash register system can be broken through, there will be other ″reasons why it can’t be done,″ such as ″to protect the food service industry.

The problem is high prices. It will be noticeable in the summer. The tight domestic inventory of naphtha, a raw material for plastics that affects many of our daily necessities, is expected to increase the price of all kinds of things. Can we show hope for people’s lives before then? This is a critical moment.

No Mercy for Veteran Councilors

After his historic victory in the February lower house election, Mr. Takaichi’s divine power is beginning to wane, perhaps due to his inaction on the issue of high prices.

In April, LDP-endorsed candidates were defeated in eight municipal elections in Fukuoka, Aichi, and other prefectures. In particular, the Nerima ward mayor’s race, held on April 12, ended in defeat despite the support of Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama (66).

While the party is casting a cold eye on Mr. Takaichi, who can no longer win elections, his treatment of veteran councilors is further deepening the rift between him and party members. Ichiro Aizawa, 71, chairman of the House of Representatives Election System Council, who had declared on his social networking site that “reducing the number of members is out of the question,” and Yasukazu Hamada, 70, chairman of the House of Representatives Steering Committee, who was said to be “dissatisfied with Mr. Takaichi’s consideration for the opposition parties in the management of the assembly.

Mr. Takaichi’s meetings with party leaders in the past six months have numbered only a few, including a lunch with Vice President Taro Aso (85). Face-to-face meetings and study sessions have been drastically reduced, and Mr. Takaichi has remained in his office. If Mr. Takaichi does not get his way, even veterans are cut off without mercy. He is like a paranoid dictator,” said a mid-level LDP member.

Mr. Takaichi is becoming increasingly lonely within the party. If things continue as they are, rather than achieving “zero consumption tax,” there is a possibility that the party will collapse in mid-air.

The dissatisfaction of party members is building up because of his exclusive stance and authoritarian appointments. The high approval rating is containing it now, but once the approval rating starts to drop, the dissatisfaction will explode at once,” Suzuki said.

The only way to overcome the difficult situation is to meet the expectations of the people and maintain a high approval rating.

From the May 15-22, 2026 issue of FRIDAY