The government's devolution panel has submitted to Prime Minister Taro Aso a second set of recommendations calling for the consolidation of regional offices of central government ministries and a reduction in the number of national servants working at such offices.

The scope of the reform contained in the plan is smaller than expected. This indicates that resistance is building from government ministries and bureaucrats as Mr. Aso's grip on power weakens.

Some 210,000 of the nation's 330,000 national servants work for the central government's regional offices. The panel discussed what to do with 15 such offices in terms of jurisdiction. Under the panel's proposal, only one — the Central Labor Relations Commission's regional office — would be abolished and six offices would continue to exist with their organization streamlined. Two offices under the wing of the health, labor and welfare ministry would be integrated into a "bloc organization."