役員連絡会後 萩生田光一幹事長代行 記者会見(2026.7.7)

On Tuesday, July 7, 2026, an executive meeting was held, followed by a press conference by Acting Secretary-General Koichi Hagiuda. [Opening Remarks] Good morning. I will report on behalf of the Secretary-General. Regarding the outline of today's executive meeting, the statements made by each executive were largely the same as those made at yesterday's executive meeting. That concludes the outline of the executive meeting. [Question and Answer Session] Q: This is TV Asahi. While the various committees in the House of Councillors began working today, the House of Representatives is still at a standstill. The opposition parties are refusing to deliberate, demanding that the bill to reduce the number of seats and the bills related to the sub-capital, which were part of the coalition agreement with the Japan Innovation Party, be abandoned. Yesterday, Japan Innovation Party leader Yoshimura criticized the opposition's refusal to deliberate, calling it "the destruction of democracy." Last week, Speaker Mori of the House of Representatives called on both the ruling and opposition parties to discuss these two bills in a spirit of mutual concession. As Acting Secretary of State Hagiuda, how do you intend to interpret and respond to this spirit of mutual concession? A: Following Speaker Mori's remarks last week, Secretary-General Suzuki met with Secretary-General Kai of the Centrist Reform Alliance, and they confirmed that they would both make efforts toward normalizing the Diet. Furthermore, at yesterday's House of Councillors Budget Committee meeting, Prime Minister Takaichi indicated her intention to attend the Budget Committee and party leader debates requested by the opposition parties, and I understand that coordination between the ruling and opposition parties' Diet affairs committees is continuing. As the responsible ruling party, we believe it is necessary to firmly implement the important policies we promised the people in the last general election and fulfill our responsibility. Therefore, I believe that there are various kinds of "mutual concessions," and as members of the Diet elected by the people, we should cherish the forum for discussion and proceed while making concessions to each other. Q: This is TV Asahi. The opposition parties are more concerned with the bill to reduce the number of seats. For example, prioritizing the bill related to the sub-capital, which the opposition has proposed as an alternative, might be a solution. How do you think we should respond to this, including discussions with the Ishin party? A: As a partner of the ruling party, I believe that at this stage, there is no other option but to continue working closely with the Ishin party to ensure the passage of all submitted and planned bills within the current session. We will continue to have thorough discussions. Q: This is Nishinippon Shimbun. I would like to ask about the issue of money transfers in the Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly. Two prefectural assembly members have testified, using their real names, that when they assumed their positions as Speaker and Deputy Speaker in 2020, several senior members of the Liberal Democratic Party's prefectural assembly group asked them to pay a total of 27.5 million yen under the guise of "golf expenses for lobbying other factions," and that they handed over the cash. Audio data recording the exchanges has also been revealed. There are testimonies that for many years in the Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly, the practice of arranging positions with money has continued, mainly by the Liberal Democratic Party. How does the party headquarters perceive this issue? If there is a possibility that the party will take action, such as calling for improvement, please let us know your thoughts. A: First of all, I am aware of this matter through the media, but I do not have a grasp of the details, so I would like to refrain from commenting. I think the first thing is for the Fukuoka Prefectural Federation to thoroughly confirm the facts, and then, if there is anything the party headquarters should do, we will consider it accordingly. Q: This is TV Tokyo. I would like to ask about the "Japanese version of DOGE" and the review of special tax measures and subsidies. It has been positioned as a pet project of the Takaichi administration's "responsible and proactive fiscal policy," but the results of the self-assessment by each ministry and agency showed that only one item was headed for abolition, highlighting the difficulty of securing funding. I'd like to ask again how you perceive the significance and role of this "Japanese version of DOGE," and also, given that the interim report of the National Conference indicates a "review of special tax and subsidy programs" as a source of funding, how do you view the current situation? Furthermore, how do you intend to address this going forward, and how do you plan to ensure its effectiveness? A: I'm the acting secretary-general, so perhaps you should a...