Japan PM Takaichi plans pay cuts for herself, Cabinet ministers to push reform

TOKYO(Japan): The newly elected Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is set to introduce a revision to the public servant remuneration law to implement pay cuts for herself and ministers in her cabinet during the ongoing extraordinary session of Parliament, The Japan Times reported, citing government sources.

According to The Japan Times, the proposal, expected to be discussed at a meeting of relevant ministers as early as Tuesday, would suspend additional allowances currently paid to the Prime Minister and Cabinet ministers, in addition to their lawmakers’ salaries.

The move is part of Takaichi’s broader effort to demonstrate her commitment to administrative and fiscal reform.

Takaichi, who has long advocated reducing ministerial pay, reiterated her stance at her inaugural news conference in October, saying, “I’ll work on a law revision so that (cabinet members) do not receive pay exceeding lawmakers’ salaries,” as quoted by The Japan Times.

The Japanese government is considering specifying in the revised law that the extra allowances for the Prime Minister and Cabinet ministers will not be provided “for the time being”.

At present, lawmakers receive a monthly salary of JPY 1.294 million, while the Prime Minister is granted an additional JPY 1.152 million and Cabinet ministers receive JPY 489,000 in allowances, as reported by The Japan Times.

However, as part of ongoing cost-cutting measures, the Prime Minister currently returns 30 per cent of the additional pay, and ministers return 20 per cent, effectively reducing their allowances to about JPY 390,000 and JPY 110,000, respectively, as confirmed by Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara.

The planned salary cuts have received support from the Japan Innovation Party (JIP), the Liberal Democratic Party’s new coalition partner, which has also called for reducing lawmakers’ privileges.

“It’s a wonderful initiative,” JIP co-leader Fumitake Fujita said, praising Takaichi’s reform drive, as reported by The Japan Times.

However, the proposal has drawn some criticism. Democratic Party for the People leader Yuichiro Tamaki called the pay cut plan “a symbol of the deflationary mindset”, questioning its timing as the government seeks to boost household incomes.

“I have mixed feelings,” an incumbent Cabinet member admitted, reflecting a divide within the government over the political and economic implications of the decision, The Japan Times reported. (ANI)