The Japanese Prime Minister and Public PolicyDespite the undeniable importance of Japan in world affairs, both politically and economically, the office of the Japanese prime minister has recieved far less attention from scholars than have the top political offices in other advanced industrialized democracies. This book is the first major systemic analysis of the Japanese prime minister’s role and influence in the policy process. Kenji Hayao argues that the Japanese prime minister can play a major if not critical role in bringing about a change in policy. In Japan the prime minister’s style is different from what is considered usual for parliamentary leaders: rather than being strong and assertive, he tends to be reactive. How did the role develop in this way? If he is not a major initiator of policy change, how and under what conditions can the prime minister make his impact felt? Finally, what are the consequences of this rather weak leadership? In answering these questions, Professor Hayao presents two case studies (educational reform and reform of the tax system) involving Nakasone Yasuhiro to see how he be became involved in the policy issues and how he affected the process. Hayao then examines a number of broad forces that seem important in explaining the prime minister’s role in the policy process: how a leader is chosen; his relationships with other important actors in the political system - the political parties and the subgovernments; and the structure of his “inner” staff and advisors. |
Contents
| 3 | |
| 6 | |
| 14 | |
Prime Ministerial Issues | 19 |
Conclusion | 26 |
The apanese Prime Minister in Comparative Perspective | 28 |
Japan as a Majoritarian System | 29 |
Longterm Trends | 43 |
The Prime Minister and Party Politics The LDP and the Opposition | 122 |
The LDP | 123 |
The National Assembly | 132 |
Conclusion | 139 |
The Prime Minister and Subgovernments | 141 |
Subgovernments | 142 |
The Prime Minister and Subgovernments | 150 |
Conclusion | 155 |
Conclusion | 44 |
Nakasone and Educational Reform | 46 |
Nakasone Looks for an Issue | 48 |
Establishing the National Council on Educational Reform | 52 |
The National Council on Educational Reform | 54 |
The Rinkyoshins Deliberations | 56 |
Enactment of Proposals | 62 |
Conclusion | 65 |
Nakasone and Tax Reform | 68 |
Tax Reform Reaches the Agenda | 69 |
Shaping the Agenda | 71 |
The LDP Tax Council Deliberations | 77 |
The First Attempt to Pass the Tax Reform Bills | 81 |
The Second Attempt to Pass the Tax Reform Bills | 88 |
Tax Reform Under Takeshita and Kaifu | 92 |
Conclusion | 94 |
The Process of Selecting a Prime Minister | 96 |
Becoming a Candidate for the Party Presidency | 97 |
The Race for the Presidency of the LDP | 114 |
Conclusion | 118 |
The Prime Ministers Staff | 157 |
The Inner Staff | 158 |
The Cabinet Secretariat | 168 |
The Management and Coordination Agency | 177 |
Personal Advisers and Advisory Committees | 180 |
Conclusion | 182 |
The Prime Minister and Public Policy | 184 |
The Size of the Prime Ministers Agenda | 185 |
The Prime Minister and the Policy Process | 186 |
The Prime Minister and Policy Change | 194 |
Sustaining Resonance | 198 |
Conclusion | 200 |
Conclusion | 202 |
The Perils Of Strong Leadership | 203 |
The Prime Minister and the Iapanese Political System | 205 |
Lists of Prime Ministerial Issues | 213 |
Notes | 259 |
| 319 | |
| 339 | |