Press Conference by the Chief Cabinet Secretary (Excerpt)

JAPANESE

Opening Statement by Chief Cabinet Secretary Edano

(Abridged)

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: Next, I would like to report about the 6th meeting of the Reconstruction Headquarters for the Reconstruction in response to the Great East Japan Earthquake, the 18th meeting of the Emergency Disaster Response Headquarters, and the 19th meeting of the Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters, which were held jointly this morning prior to the Cabinet meeting. The meetings of the three headquarters were held jointly in order to have a holistic perspective of the current situation and future challenges regarding the recovery from the earthquake disaster and the response to the nuclear disaster toward full-scale reconstruction which have been undertaken with utmost efforts ever since the earthquake. Three items were on today's agenda. The first item was a report from Minister Hirano regarding the current situation of the recovery and the status of the initiatives being taken to address major issues as they relate to the Reconstruction Headquarters and the Emergency Disaster Response Headquarters. For the second item, on behalf of the Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters, Minister Hosono proposed the Basic Concept for Decontamination Promotion as well as the Basic Policy on the Emergency Implementation of Decontamination, which were then approved by the meeting. This basic concept and policy present the immediate goals and work plan, etc. for implementing swift and effective decontamination measures in order to alleviate the radiation concerns of the residents who are now still forced to spend inconvenient and uneasy lives due to the nuclear accident, as well as to promote the recovery and reconstruction of the areas affected by the nuclear accident. For the third item, the Reconstruction Headquarters gave a report on the holding of a discussion forum with Fukushima Prefecture. In forthcoming forums, discussions will take place on the Government's measures to support Fukushima Prefecture's reconstruction from the nuclear disaster, issues related to the review of evacuation zones, among other matters. The first discussion forum is scheduled to be held in Fukushima City on August 27. For details, please direct your questions to the secretariat of the respective headquarters.

Lastly, I would like to report about the Office for the Preparation of Nuclear Safety Regulatory Organization Reform. Today, pursuant to the Cabinet decision of August 15, the Office for the Preparation of Nuclear Safety Regulatory Organization Reform was established at the Cabinet Secretariat in order to carry out the preparation work for establishing the new safety regulatory organization as an affiliated agency of the Ministry of the Environment and detaching the nuclear safety regulation function from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. For details, please direct your questions to the office of Minister Hosono who is in charge of this matter.

(Abridged)