Japan's Diet faces stalemate as seat‑reduction bill blocks parliamentary agenda

The Japanese Diet is experiencing a legislative deadlock. The upper house is set to resume bill deliberations, but the lower house remains stalled over the government's proposed reduction of parliamentary seats and a related "secondary capital" bill. Opposition parties refuse to vote on any legislation while these two proposals remain on the agenda, prompting the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to discuss extending the current session to prevent a complete shutdown of bill passage.

Prime Minister Takai has attended the upper‑house finance committee, while government officials consider a two‑week extension of the Diet term. At the same time, a cross‑party Social Security National Conference that had been discussing a consumption‑tax cut was scheduled to reconvene, but its progress is also hindered by the broader parliamentary impasse.