With Monday's passage of the record-high budget for fiscal 2017, the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is headed for the latter half of the year's ordinary Diet session that, in all likelihood, promises a further war of words with opposition parties over the ongoing scandal involving a shady land deal.
The Upper House plenary session approved the ¥97.45 trillion budget that highlighted an increase in defense spending — a record ¥5.13 trillion — reflecting Abe's beefed-up effort to counter China's maritime assertiveness and North Korea's missile launches. Roughly a third of the total expenditure, or ¥32.47 trillion, is earmarked for social security costs, including pensions and medical expenses.
The enactment of the budget will bring to a halt deliberation at budget committees — venues used by opposition forces to grill Abe and nationalist Osaka school operator Yasunori Kagoike over a heavily discounted land deal that has raised allegations of influence-peddling.