Concerns over further postponement of revision of throne succession measures: Ruling and opposition parties divided, aware of upper house election
On January 12, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met with Hiroyuki Hosoda, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Akiko Sando, Speaker of the House of Councillors, and others in the Diet, and handed them a report compiled by a government advisory panel on the stable succession to the throne. The report focuses on two proposals to secure the dwindling number of members of the Imperial Family: (1) female members of the IF should remain in the IF after marriage, and (2) male members of the former IF should return to the IF as adopted children. Unfortunately, the report does not go into drastic measures such as the pros and cons of a female or female lineage emperor. This is due to the fact that there are strong calls among conservatives to maintain the male line. There is also a large gap between the positions of the various parties, and with the Upper House elections coming up in the summer, there is a risk that discussions in the Diet will be postponed. Toshimitsu Motegi,