Kihara Holds Senior Vice-Ministers’ Meeting
Overview
On September 25, 2026, Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara held a meeting of senior vice-ministers at the Prime Minister’s Office and called on them to carry out their duties with a sense of urgency to realize the basic policies of the Second Takaichi Cabinet reshuffle. In his address, he set out priorities including economic growth and responses to rising prices, integrated tax and social security reform, disaster response, diplomacy and security, and stronger public communication of policies.
Key points
- Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara called on senior vice-ministers to perform their duties toward realizing the Cabinet’s basic policies.
- The Cabinet aims for robust economic growth throughout Japan through responsible proactive fiscal policy and public-private investment partnerships.
- Addressing rising prices is the top priority, alongside pursuing integrated tax and social security reform.
- The address also set out policies on disaster response, strengthening diplomacy and security, and improving public communication of policies.
Overview
On September 25, 2026, Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara held a meeting of senior vice-ministers at the Prime Minister’s Office and delivered an address. The address stated that the Second Takaichi Cabinet, formed in the September 17 cabinet reshuffle, would act as one to realize its pledges under the banner “Decision and Challenge, and then Execution.”
Impact
He called on senior vice-ministers to support ministers, senior vice-ministers, and parliamentary vice-ministers, and to devote themselves to their duties at the forefront of their staff as the heads of administrative affairs.
Details
On the economy, the government aims for growth by advancing investment through public-private partnerships under the “Japan Growth Strategy” and “Regional Future Strategy.” It will make responses to rising prices its top priority and pursue integrated tax and social security reform, including a temporary reduction in the consumption tax rate on food and beverages and the introduction of employment-related burden-reduction support payments.
The government will strengthen its response to natural disasters such as earthquakes and torrential rains and devote all efforts to recovery from large-scale disasters. In diplomacy, with the Japan-U.S. alliance as its cornerstone and under an evolved Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP), it will strengthen and expand cooperation with like-minded countries and Global South nations.
The government will strengthen its intelligence functions, with the National Intelligence Council serving as the control tower, and review the three strategic documents to fundamentally strengthen defense capabilities. It will improve public communication of policies and explain them clearly so that the public can understand and make use of Cabinet measures and new legal systems.