Prime Minister Naoto Kan attended the Liaison Meeting Among Ministries and Agencies Concerning the Great East Japan Earthquake at the Prime Minister's Office.

The Prime Minister said in his opening address, "Today, I would like to ask two things from you. The first concerns the reduction in wages of national civil servants. As you are aware, the economic situation of Japan is quite severe, and therefore, I am asking for the understanding of each office. Of course, those in positions of political authority will also be subject to the wage cuts accordingly. This was one of the items which were approved by the Cabinet today.
Secondly, nearly three months have passed since the earthquake, and I believe you are all taking thorough responses in your respective capacities. However, from the perspective of the people affected by the disaster or the perspective of the people of Japan, a lot of the efforts have been much too late or inadequate. Many people have pointed this out. In order to be able to take bold and speedy responses to address the issues from the perspective of the people affected by the disaster and speed up the work and make the process clearer, I would like to ask for the further efforts of ministers, vice-ministers, and parliamentary secretaries as well as all of you."