The political news that will have the most far-reaching repercussions into the new year is the plummeting approval rating of Prime Minister Taro Aso and his Cabinet, and his delay in dissolving the Lower House of the Diet for a general election.
Immediately after its inauguration in September, the Aso Cabinet enjoyed an approval rating of around 50 percent, although the figure differed slightly depending on which newspaper or TV network poll you were looking at.
The popularity of the Cabinet was lower than Aso's predecessor, Yasuo Fukuda, the Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner, New Komeito, had expected. Battered by the opposition and falling approval ratings, Fukuda had resigned with the hope that people's expectations for the new prime minister would boost the Cabinet's approval rating, enabling the prime minister to dissolve the Lower House and face a general election with some confidence.