Prime Minister Naoto Kan held a meeting with Mr. Nobuaki Koga, President of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation (RENGO), and others representing RENGO at the Prime Minister's Office.

At the start of the meeting, the Prime Minister received a request for an early enactment of the budget and the budget-related bills.

Later, the Prime Minister said in his address, "I believe the situation of the Japanese economy is at a critical stage. We have been doing our utmost to address the issue of employment, as well as economic growth, among others, with the cooperation of RENGO. As a result, the economy is gradually picking up and the employment situation is improving amidst difficult circumstances.
We should not allow anything to dampen this trend now. Therefore, we must do all we can to enact the budget and the related bills for executing the budget. This is what I believe.
There has been not a single step backward with regard to our philosophy of putting the lives of the people first, set forth during the election campaign in 2009, as well as my thoughts behind repeating employment, employment and employment."