The ruling bloc aims to push a consumption tax cut bill through the Lower House on Nov 6, but opposition parties have not dropped their objections, saying the contents of the legislation are opaque.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will attend question time on the bill at the Lower House Financial Affairs Committee on Nov 6. Komeito, which forms a joint caucus called Chudo with the Democratic Reform group in the Lower House, confirmed at a party meeting on Nov 5 that it cannot support the bill at this stage, according to Hiroaki Nakano, the party's policy research council chair. Nakano said the government has not made clear who would qualify for a new income-linked benefit program, and the party left the decision to him pending the government's answers at the committee.
Democratic Reform took the same line, with its members at a Nov 4 meeting leaving the decision to leader Junya Ogawa and others in the direction of opposing the bill.
DPP waits on counterproposal
The Democratic Party for the People will decide after seeing how the government and ruling parties respond to its own counterproposal, which centers on raising the resident tax deduction and on cash benefits. Leader Yuichiro Tamaki told a party meeting on Nov 4 that support in the bill's current form is out of the question.
Sanseito, which campaigns for a flat across-the-board tax cut, is set to oppose the bill. Team Mirai and the Japanese Communist Party have also decided to vote against it.