Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is planning to forgo submitting a supplementary budget for fiscal 2025, which began this month, during the current ordinary session of the Diet, it was learned Tuesday.
Ishiba believes it is necessary to closely monitor the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policy, informed sources said.
Instead of a supplementary budget, the government is now expected to cover the cost of anti-inflation measures, such as electricity and gas subsidies, with reserve funds in the initial fiscal 2025 budget.
The government and ruling parties have been considering a supplementary budget to finance measures to deal with inflation and U.S. tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.
However, a senior official of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party said Tuesday night that a supplementary budget is unlikely to be submitted before the current Diet session ends on June 22 as the impact of the U.S. tariffs remains to be seen.
The LDP official also said that as Ishiba leads a minority government, it would take time to conclude talks with the opposition camp on the matter.
Ishiba could face a backlash from LDP members in the House of Councilors and Komeito, the LDP's coalition partner, who are calling for eye-catching measures ahead of this summer's Upper House election.
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