Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi entered the final days of an extended parliamentary session Thursday still trying to secure passage of legislation establishing a secondary capital, while talks on immediate economic relief remained stalled.
The bill, under debate in the Upper House, helped trigger the government¡¯s decision to extend the session by eight days through Saturday. It would create a framework for designating a city capable of temporarily assuming key functions from Tokyo during a major disaster while serving as a regional economic hub.
For the Kansai-based Japan Innovation Party (JIP), which has long promoted Osaka as Japan¡¯s ¡°second capital,¡± passage of the bill would be a tangible reward for joining the governing coalition. For Takaichi, however, it follows a bruising attempt to advance another signature JIP demand of cutting Lower House seats by roughly 10%.
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