By HAYATO JINNO/ Staff Writer
November 20, 2024 at 15:22 JST
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks at a meeting of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s political reform headquarters on Nov. 12. (Takeshi Iwashita)
The Liberal Democratic Party decided on Nov. 19 to abolish “policy activity expenses,” the highly criticized funds distributed by political parties to individual lawmakers with no obligation to disclose how they are spent.
The decision will be included in a proposal currently being reviewed by the LDP’s political reform headquarters. The ruling party will finalize the proposal by Nov. 21.
Following discussions with junior coalition partner Komeito and opposition parties, the LDP aims to revise the Political Fund Control Law by the end of the year.
Policy activity expenses are said to be used to expand the party’s influence and to develop policy. But no one really knows how the funds are spent except for the recipient lawmakers.
The absence of any requirement to disclose the use of the funds came under the spotlight amid public outrage over reports that LDP factions and their members had failed to properly report huge amounts of money accumulated from fund-raising parties.
In response, the government revised the Political Fund Control Law in June. A supplement to the revised law called for releasing receipts over how policy activity expenses were used 10 years after they are spent.
However, the supplement only stated that details, such as the timing of implementation, would be “considered at an early date.”
After the LDP’s loss of seats in the Lower Hose election in October, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba instructed the party to discuss the possible abolition of policy activity expenses.
By Oct. 15, the LDP’s draft proposal for the law revision included options for both abolishing and maintaining policy activity expenses. But subsequent discussions led to the decision to abolish them to prevent their distribution to individual lawmakers.
The proposal was confirmed during a meeting of senior members of the LDP’s political reform headquarters on Nov. 19.
Under the LDP’s plan, expenditures involving diplomatic secrets or matters affecting the privacy of recipients will not be fully disclosed. Instead, these expenses will be audited by third parties.
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