WORLD
Analysts say Japan's opposition New Komeito party could be a possible coalition partner for the DPJ should a weak election outcome hamper their ability to forge ahead.
The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), which swept to power in a general election last year, will run the government regardless of the result of the July 11 poll but the party risks policy deadlock if it fails to win a majority in the upper chamber.
Analysts say Japan's opposition New Komeito party could be a possible coalition partner for the DPJ should a weak election outcome hamper their ability to forge ahead with plans to strengthen an economic recovery and cut huge public debt.
But New Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi said that the party would not join the DPJ in a coalition and instead focus on drafting its own policy proposals in parliament.
"We have no intention of cooperating with the DPJ just to make up numbers (for a majority) at their convenience," Yamaguchi said in an interview.
"We don't want to be involved with them," he said, criticising the DPJ for breaking campaign pledges it made before taking power last year.
New Komeito, backed by a Buddhist lay group, was the Liberal Democratic Party's (LDP) junior coalition partner before it lost the general election last year. New Komeito tends to focus on economic policies for less well-off citizens.
Yamaguchi also criticised prime minister Naoto Kan floating the idea of raising Japan's 5% sales tax, saying the party would not take part in a non-partisan debate proposed by Kan to discuss the tax.
"We cannot take part (in the debate). Why has the DPJ decided to first take money?" Yamaguchi said, stressing the need to put priority on discussing reforms in social security policy.
"The DPJ is asking the people for money without showing how much they need or how they will use it."
New Komeito has said ahead of the election it wants a drastic reform of the tax system, including the sales tax, but has not specified by how much the sales tax should be raised.
Japan's many opposition parties have ruled out cooperating with the DPJ on policies, but analysts say they could be more flexible after the election is over.
A DPJ official separately told Reuters on Monday that the political environment would "change a lot" after the poll.
"Even if we don't win a majority, we will overwhelmingly be the biggest party," said Jun Azumi, chairman of the DPJ's election campaign committee.
"So I think not all the opposition parties will stick to simply criticising our governance," Azumi said, holding out hope opposition parties would at least cooperate policy-by-policy.
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