Press Conference by the Chief Cabinet Secretary

JAPANESE

Opening Statement by Chief Cabinet Secretary Edano

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I have a few items I would like to report on. First, I will talk about today's Cabinet meeting. Fourteen items, including general items, as well as a draft legislation, government ordinances, and personnel decisions were approved. In terms of statements from each minister, the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications and Prime Minister Kan spoke about the remuneration of public employees.

Before the Cabinet was a gathering of the Review Meeting on Power Supply and Demand, which I chair. At the meeting we decided on Summer Power Supply and Demand Measures. This Meeting established a framework for summer power and supply and demand on April 8. Since then, a lot of effort has been made to increase the power generation capacity of the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) and Tohoku Electric Power Company grids. As a result, we have been able to secure the capacity to generate sufficient power for the summer. In fact, the generation capacity is higher than that laid out in the framework document. Based on such a prospect, we will be setting the power conservation goal for the grids of TEPCO and Tohoku Electric Power Company between the months of July and September at 15% less than the amount consumed last year, for all types of users, including heavy and light users and households. Achieving a 15% reduction will not be a simple feat. Within our measures this time are a number of wide-reaching and detailed policies. In the manufacturing industry, we would like to ask companies to shift the times when they conduct sales or manufacturing operations, and implement measures such as spreading out the off days and summer holidays so that they can conserve power without reducing productivity. There are many companies that are already implementing voluntary initiatives. We would also like to see progress on the downgrading of the number of amperes each household has a contract for. Naturally, if these contracts are downgraded, this will automatically place limits on the amount of electricity that can be used at one time while at the same time reducing the base charge each household pays, thus having the direct affect of helping to cut household costs. I hope that moving forward we will begin to see the effect of power conservation efforts on the part of households through action to spread the information on these measures and through the speedy response of power companies to consumers who wish to lower their contract-amperage. The Government as well will have each ministry and agency conserve power, of course, and we will exert every effort to revise regulations and publicize power conservation efforts in order to move forward with power supply and demand measures. This summer will be an extremely important time from the perspective of the reconstruction and recovery efforts. Naturally, each member of the Government will come together and work as one for power conservation. I hope that we can also receive the understanding and cooperation of the people of Japan and the private sector in order to make it through the summer without any problems. The Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry and Minister for Electricity Conservation Promotion shall be making an announcement and explaining the measures to be implemented this time. If you have any questions regarding the details of the measures, I request that you direct those questions to them.

A meeting of the Ministerial Meeting Concerning Measures against Crime was also held before the Cabinet meeting. This Meeting heard a report on the progress of Measures for Ensuring Security and Safety in the Disaster-Stricken Areas, which were formulated on April 6 and revised on May 11. A briefing will be held on the exact content of the meeting by its secretariat after this, so I request that you ask about the details there.

The last item I have to report concerns shipping restrictions. In line with Article 20 Paragraph 3 of the Act on Special Measures Concerning Nuclear Emergency Preparedness, we have set shipping restrictions on bamboo shoots grown in certain areas of Fukushima Prefecture - specifically, Minamisoma City, Motomiya City, Koori City, Kunimi Town, Kawamata Town and Nishigo Village. We have issued instructions on this to the Governor of the Prefecture. For further details, please inquire at the Ministry for Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) or the Ministry for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF).

Q&As

REPORTER: After the Cabinet meeting the Prime Minister made a statement concerning public employees. What did he say?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I think that the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications will give a report on this. I have heard from him that he will first explain well the personnel costs for public employees to employee groups and thoroughly discuss the matter with these groups until an agreement is reached before beginning negotiations on cutting regular public employee salary and bonus by 10% until the end of FY2013. The Prime Minister responded that he understands that public employees have been working night and day for initiatives including those undertaken in response to the Great East Japan Earthquake. However, the current financial situation is tough. We must reduce state expenditures. Although everyone is working as hard as they are for the response to the Great East Japan Earthquake, personnel costs are not exempted from efforts to cut costs. The Prime Minister said he would like to move forward with the proposal presented by the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications. He also stated that he wants the Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications to take responsibility for negotiations with employee groups, while being assisted by the three top of the Ministry. As needed, relevant ministers such as myself, the Minister for Civil Service Reform, the Minister for National Policy or the Minister of Finance will also participate in discussions. For the special service, which includes officers in the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) and others, the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications and the Minister of Defense will hold separate meetings. Although this is true for regular public employees as well, officers in the SDF have really worked particularly hard for the response to the Great East Japan Earthquake, and in light of this, it was instructed that separate meetings should be held with the Minister of Defense.

REPORTER: Related to that, will this affect local government employees?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: The national government only directly pays national public employee.

REPORTER: As a follow up question, how will this affect remuneration for the three top political appointees you mentioned?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I think that the Prime Minister has talked about that before. This will be considered in light of the discussion and negotiation with regular public employees. Such discussion will naturally affect these officials as well. I think that certain actions must be undertaken. I can say that based on progress in the negotiations with regular service national public employees, concrete instructions will be given at an appropriate time.

REPORTER: Yesterday TEPCO acknowledged that a meltdown had occurred at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. What has the Government heard about this?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I think that the term "meltdown" has been used by many different people to mean many different things, and that we should be careful about using it ourselves. There is a reasonably high chance that fuel assemblies at Unit 1 have melted, entered into a state in which they are difficult to maintain in their form as fuel rods, and that gravity has pushed the melted material downward. The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) received a report on this yesterday from TEPCO. I think that the sooner we know about something like this the better. Judging by our understanding of the pressure in the reactors, the temperature outside and amount of radiation coming out the station, this does not seem to have posed a new problem in terms of our safety measures for those residing in the vicinity of the station. However, I do think a major point here, which I want to investigate moving forward, is whether we couldn't have measured this concretely at an earlier stage. Also, in terms of our work from here on out to bring this problem to a close, I believe that TEPCO's roadmap pays a certain level of consideration to the possibility that we may run up against certain facts at the station that differ from what we have estimated - not just limited to the current issue, but related to any number of points - or that the situation at the station may change. In particular, there is a fairly large possibility that more water has leaked than initially thought. I think a major point as we work toward a conclusion to this problem will be early investigation to help us understand clearly such issues as in what way and to what extent water has leaked. This is important.

REPORTER: On a similar topic, do you think it is now absolutely necessary that the roadmap be reconsidered?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: First of all, I would like you to ask that directly to Special Advisor to the Prime Minister Hosono. I think that the roadmap is actually supposed to be revised constantly on a monthly-basis considering the status of progress and issues such as the point we have come to understand recently. I think any revision now will be done within this framework.

REPORTER: This is being discussed between the Government and the investigatory commission looking into the nuclear incident. When will the commission start their investigation if a Cabinet decision is made on this matter?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: The people of Japan and the international community expect a thorough investigation. We are currently laying the groundwork for this. Accordingly, while I think it would be wonderful if we could start earlier than later, I think that we must also consider the need to create a system through which a thorough investigation can be carried out. So I would like to have a little more time for this.

REPORTER: In that case, although things seem to be coming to a conclusion, at least in terms of the spread of radiation from the station, things at the site have not yet really settled down. What are your thoughts on carrying out an investigation at the site while work is still progressing there?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: On that point, while I think it would be better not to release a final investigation report until after the situation at the station has been resolved, to the extent that the investigation does not get in the way with work at the station, I think that we need to gather material and conduct interviews with relevant people as much as possible related to how this incident occurred and the process that has been followed from the beginning until now. And I think we should start doing this as soon as possible.

REPORTER: I believe that the compensation policy regarding the nuclear power station incident was decided. Was this decided in the ministerial roundtable meeting following the Cabinet meeting or in some other forum?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: Using the forum provided by the ministerial roundtable meeting, we held a meeting of the response team composed of the relevant ministers concerned.

REPORTER: On a related note, the Government has until now stressed that a precondition for the injection of public funds is for financial institutions and stakeholders in TEPCO to take independent measures. In the case that the borrowings of TEPCO prior to the disaster are not all written off, do you think that it would be possible to gain the understanding of the public concerning the injection of public funds?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: First of all, following the disaster, I think it was on March 31, new extra financing was provided to TEPCO in view of its responsibility to contain the situation at the nuclear power station. This current issue should be viewed separately. I believe that efforts must be made to make the public fully aware of the situation. With regard to financing provided prior to the March 11 disaster, at the current point that is a matter between private sector bodies and I should therefore take care in what I say, but if you are asking me whether the public would be understanding of this matter, my own view is that it would be impossible to gain public understanding.

REPORTER: So if it is the case that the debts are not written off between the private sector bodies, is there a possibility that the Government will not inject public funds?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I believe that could be the case.

REPORTER: Yesterday in your press conference you stated that a decision on the scheme for compensation would be decided at the earliest by last night, but in actual fact it was delayed by one day. What was the reason for this?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I believe I qualified my statement with "at the earliest" yesterday, so the decision was made within the anticipated timeframe.

REPORTER: Our press coverage has looked at the status of consultations within the project teams of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) and it appears that various views were stated in the process of coming to a decision on the issue of a compensation scheme, from a broad spectrum of the party, including those close to Mr. Ozawa. Did the Government engage in any behind-the-scenes dealings with the DPJ and were there any problems with the way in which the matter was explained?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: This issue of the compensation scheme is a very important one, to which we must give various matters broad consideration, and it was therefore not possible to create the scheme without referring to various sectors and people with knowledge and experience in such sectors. It is for this reason that considerations among the ministers involved in Government took a considerable amount of time and required various discussions, which was also reflected in the discussion processes within the DPJ. I think it is therefore only natural that given the multiplicity of views on this issue it should have taken a certain time to come to a conclusion.

REPORTER: The compensation scheme has thus been approved by the Cabinet today. However, with regard to the Basic Act on Reconstruction, you stated in mid-April that the Government was making preparations to submit a draft bill, but ultimately, following problems with the way in which the matter was explained to the ruling parties, including the DPJ and the People's New Party, now more than two months have passed since the disaster. I believe that it is necessary to engage in reconstruction as a matter of urgency and yet there are perceptions that the failure of the Government and the ruling parties to consult effectively is causing further delays. What are your views on this matter?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: The Government has sought to expedite the preparations for this draft bill to the maximum extent possible and had it been the case that other conditions were in place, preparations could have been completed for the submission of the draft bill. However, as this is an issue relating to legislation, it cannot be implemented merely at the behest of the Government. The approval of the Diet first has to be gained and while the Government has been making every effort to conclude preparations, efforts have also been ongoing in the Diet to gain understanding at the earliest possible juncture. This naturally involves seeking the cooperation of the ruling parties and also consultations between ruling and opposition parties. In the usual process of formulating legislation the Prime Minister is also consulted after a bill is submitted, but in this case efforts were made to engage in consultations and discussions prior to the submission of the draft bill. Regrettably, at the current point, these efforts have yet to come to fruition, but the Government had completed preparations for submission by the end of April and the only question now is whether inter-party coordination and consultation in the Diet will be made prior to or after submission of the draft bill.

REPORTER: With regard to the Basic Act on Reconstruction and the revisions to the Cabinet Act, do you expect to receive the cooperation of the opposition parties?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: We certainly wish to obtain the cooperation of the opposition parties and although I am aware that there a number of differences of opinion, I think that all parties recognize that unless all-party agreement can be reached on these bills and progress made, it will only cause further trouble for people affected by the disaster. It is for this reason that the ruling parties are responding flexibly to the extent that it is possible to do so and further efforts are being made to gain the understanding of the opposition parties.

REPORTER: On a slightly different topic, Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman of the United States expressed his hopes that Japan would enter into the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage at an early stage, a system in which the cost of future nuclear accidents is covered by a fund created jointly by countries around the world. What is your response to this, and what are your views regarding how the Government will respond to this in the future?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I am aware that such a request has been expressed, and we are currently holding deliberations on this convention. Looking at aspects such as the system for reserve funds among the member countries to cover compensation, and taking into consideration that Japan has caused such an incident this time, while I think the convention contains content we should proactively consider, there are elements within it such as the issue of jurisdiction, that I believe we must thoroughly consider before we make a decision.

REPORTER: Going back to a matter discussed earlier about the investigation commission, you said that preparations are underway. Who exactly is responsible for selecting the commission's members?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: That decision, of course, will ultimately be made by the Prime Minister.

REPORTER: Since the Prime Minister is one of the people who will be investigated in this process, if he selects individuals close to him, for example, this will presumably impact the quality of the investigation. Any comments about this?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: In order that this not be an issue, we are of course moving ahead with our deliberations based on the major premise that we must appoint impartial individuals - how should I put it - those with a clear position of impartiality from the perspective of citizens.

REPORTER: I don't quite understand. What you say is that these are individuals whose impartiality is clear, but the selection is not based on any method, is it? I do not understand how you plan to make such a determination.

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: This matter - about the question of how the members are ultimately selected - if the Government were to verify the selection with a sense of responsibility, in the end we must still allow the Prime Minister to make the final decision. Even if the Government were to commission a third party to make the selection, the same problem would arise regarding who this third party appointed by the Government is, and as such, there is only so far we can go to combat the issues that surround such a selection. We are making our considerations about who to appoint based on the willingness to select those to whom we will be able to confidently entrust the responsibility of carrying out the investigation with ensured impartiality.

REPORTER: In your earlier comments related to the compensation scheme, you said something to the effect that the additional financing provided on March 31 is different. What is the logic behind your thinking that there is any part that is different? The financing that was done based on the bank's business decisions seems fundamentally the same to me.

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: The incident at the nuclear power station occurred on March 11. As for the risk of such an incident, in a broad sense, with regard to the financing that was made prior to this, it was done as a matter of course with such risks in mind. That is a matter of market fundamentals. As such, we of course have the intention of receiving the cooperation of financial institutions based on the damages, increase in costs, and financial situation arising from this incident. However, with regard to the wide range of decisions to be made under the situation we are in after the incident, various developments and circumstances have changed because the incident took place, and therefore, I have been saying that I expect that the question of how TEPCO will ask for cooperation regarding such matters to be something requiring careful consideration.

REPORTER: Do you mean to say that you believe the Government could possibly offer support or protection to the company?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: No. As I have been saying repeatedly, this is a matter of the dealings between private entities. Therefore, it is a question of whether TEPCO is going to ask for cooperation from financial institutions and whether the respective financial institutions will agree to offer such cooperation. The Government will make decisions based on the results of such efforts on whether it will offer assistance to the disaster victims through TEPCO, whether it will go forward with the steps that have been decided on, or whether it will have no choice but to take a different route. Such decisions will not be made in the form of intervention in the transactions taking place between private entities but rather, government's decisions on how to respond to the situation will be made based on the developments of such transactions.