key takeaways
- The Ishiba government indicated on Tuesday, 15 April that it would not pursue a supplemental budget during the current Diet session, in part due to uncertainty about the impact of US trade policy.
- Although some Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers wanted a stimulus package before upper house elections, shelving a supplemental budget allows Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru to sidestep a contentious debate about fiscal policy — and polls suggest that the public does not necessarily want a stimulus package anyway.
- Meanwhile, the question of a consumption tax cut — raised as part of the stimulus debate — has served to divide the opposition, potentially improving Ishiba’s position.
Japan Foresight 