臨時国会閉幕 ねじれ打開へ政権公約見直せ

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Aug. 8, 2010)
DPJ, opposition must rise above divided Diet
臨時国会閉幕　ねじれ打開へ政権公約見直せ（8月7日付・読売社説）

As the so-called divided Diet threatens to paralyze national politics, it is necessary for ruling and opposition parties to overcome the impasse and build consensus on policy issues. But, regrettably, we saw no movement in that direction during the extraordinary Diet session that closed Friday.
　日本政治の停滞を避けるには、衆参ねじれ国会の難局を打開し、与野党の合意を形成する必要がある。だが、今国会では残念ながら、その道筋は見えてこなかった。

The focal point of the eight-day Diet session, the first since the House of Councillors election last month, was how the administration of Prime Minister Naoto Kan and opposition parties would behave in a divided Diet, in which the ruling camp controls the House of Representatives while the opposition controls the upper house.
　参院選後初めての臨時国会が８日間の日程を終えた。焦点は、新たなねじれ状況に菅政権と野党がどう対応するかだった。

Do as we say, not as we did

During question-and-answer sessions of the budget committees of each chamber, which were held for four days in total, Kan sought the opposition's cooperation, saying, "I'd like to ask you to have discussions in a way that will enable necessary policies to be implemented."
　菅首相は、衆参計４日間の予算委員会質疑で、「必要な政策が実行できるような議論をお願いしたい」と野党に協力を要請した。

Regarding the previous divided Diet, under which the then opposition Democratic Party of Japan obstructed the then ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito on such issues as the appointment of a Bank of Japan governor, Kan said, "We'd like to reflect on what should be reflected on." He thus maintained a humble attitude.
　民主党が野党時代、ねじれ国会で日銀総裁人事などをめぐって自公政権を揺さぶったことについても、「反省すべきは反省したい」と語り、低姿勢に終始した。

But such perfunctory statements alone do not make the situation better. As the LDP and other parties insist, a drastic modification of the DPJ's policy pledges is inevitable.
　だが、通り一遍の発言だけでは無論、事態の改善は望めない。自民党などが要求するように、やはり民主党の政権公約の抜本的修正に踏み込むことが欠かせない。

It now has become apparent that revenue sources for child-rearing allowances and other handout policies stipulated in the DPJ manifesto cannot be secured simply by rearranging the state budget. These policies now are in a state of collapse.
　子ども手当など、政権公約のバラマキ政策は、予算の組み替えでは財源を確保できないことが明白になり、今や破綻(はたん)状態にある。

Given that Kan seeks to hold on to his position as DPJ president in an intraparty election next month, he probably does not want to drastically change the policy pledges as it would ignite opposition within the party. But he won't be able to obtain the opposition's cooperation if the situation remains unchanged.
　９月の党代表選で再選を目指す菅首相とすれば、公約の大幅修正は党内の反発を招き、決断しづらい事情もあろうが、現状のままでは野党の協力は得られまい。

During the latest extraordinary Diet session, a bill to enable lawmakers to return part of their salary should they not serve for an entire month was enacted. Another bill to allow an organization to continue operating social insurance hospitals also was enacted. But these achievements alone do not make us think the ruling and opposition parties have started cooperating.
　臨時国会では、議員歳費の一部自主返納と、社会保険病院の運営法人の存続を可能にする法律が成立したが、これだけでは、与野党協調の糸口とは言えない。

Because of disarray among opposition parties, they dropped a plan to submit censure motions against some Cabinet members, including Justice Minister Keiko Chiba, who failed to be reelected in the upper house election. But the opposition camp likely will press the ruling camp hard on such issues as the politics and money scandals involving former DPJ Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa during an extraordinary Diet session scheduled for autumn.
　参院選で落選した千葉法相らに対する問責決議案は、野党の足並みがそろわず、提出が見送られた。だが、秋の臨時国会では、民主党の小沢一郎前幹事長の「政治とカネ」の問題などを中心に、野党の追及が本格化しよう。

The opposition parties blasted the Kan administration for giving up a plan to create a national strategy bureau, saying it would be a step backward in efforts to enhance politicians' power in the handling of government affairs. A bill to set up such a bureau has been carried over for continued deliberations.
　菅政権が国家戦略局の創設を断念したことについて、野党は「政治主導が後退する」などと一斉に批判した。戦略局を設置するための政治主導確立法案は現在、継続審議になっている。

We suggest the prime minister call for discussions between the ruling and opposition camps to modify the bill. In doing so, it would be beneficial to bring up the idea of creating a Japanese version of the U.S. National Security Council, as earlier proposed by the LDP-New Komeito ruling coalition.
　首相は、この法案の修正に関する与野党協議を呼びかけてはどうか。その際、自公政権がかつて提案した日本版ＮＳＣ（国家安全保障会議）の創設を持ちかけることが有益となろう。

Focus on shared goals

Since both the ruling and opposition camps wish to implement plans to strengthen politicians' control of government affairs and expand the functions of the Prime Minister's Office, it should be possible for them to start deliberations on these issues.
　政治主導や首相官邸機能の強化については、与野党とも異論はなく、協議入りは可能だろう。

It is not an easy task for one party to win a majority in upper house elections. The divided Diet may continue for some time. If the Diet fails to make any important decisions or fails to respond quickly to an economic or diplomatic crisis, Japan will face a further decline in its standing.
　参院選で一党が単独過半数を得るのは簡単でなく、ねじれは長期化する恐れがある。政治が何も決められず、経済や外交の危機に機敏に対応できなくては、日本は一層地盤沈下する。

The ruling and opposition camps should seriously search for a way to build consensus.
与野党は真剣に合意形成の道を探るべきだ。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Aug. 7, 2010)
（2010年8月7日01時18分 読売新聞）