The ruling Democratic Party of Japan is expected to make a formal decision early next week on suspending the party membership of Koichiro Watanabe, a Lower House lawmaker who has been rebelling against Prime Minister Naoto Kan's leadership, lawmakers said Friday.
Senior DPJ lawmakers have recommended that Watanabe's party membership be suspended for six months after he abstained this week from voting on the government's budget plan for fiscal 2011 in the Lower House.
An ethics panel meeting of the DPJ discussed the proposal and decided it will hold a hearing for Watanabe on Tuesday, the lawmakers said.