TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan's new trade minister said he expects nuclear reactors idled for routine maintenance to restart once safety is confirmed and local communities give their approval, reflecting Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's view that nuclear power will play a continued role in the country's energy mix.
Yukio Edano made no further comment on the likely timing for reactor restarts, which have been delayed by public concerns about nuclear safety in the aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi radiation crisis, threatening power shortages as more reactors go offline for inspections and maintenance.
Edano also told a news conference on Tuesday that safety checks should be done thoroughly and in a way that is easy for local residents to understand.
Edano served as chief cabinet secretary under previous Prime Minister Naoto Kan, who had taken a hard line toward nuclear power and called for more ambitious efforts to boost renewable energy.
The March 11 earthquake and tsunami, which triggered the Fukushima crisis, spurred the government to require utilities to carry out two-stage stress tests to gauge the resilience of nuclear plants to a massive earthquake or other unforeseen events.
"I think one purpose of conducting the stress tests is to make checks transparent and specific, and to explain the results in a way that's easy to understand," Edano said.
He said there was no room for politics in determining the safety of nuclear reactors, but he implied there should be flexibility in determining whether local residents have given consent to reactor restarts, calling for "comprehensive judgments."
Edano said he wanted to avoid mandatory reductions of power use in the winter, and hoped to achieve this by encouraging households and offices to conserve power.
At his inaugural news conference as trade minister late on Monday, Edano said Japan should strive to become a society that does not depend on nuclear power, although he stopped short of calling for an eventual closure of all nuclear power plants.
On the U.S.-led talks on the proposed Transpacific Partnership pact (TPP), Edano said while there was a global push for progress on the pact, Japan must first reach a consensus among interested domestic parties before determining whether to join talks.
Edano replaced Yoshio Hachiro, who resigned after only eight days as trade minister following gaffes related to the Fukushima plant. The trade minister also oversees energy policy.
(Reporting by Risa Maeda and Chikako Mogi; Editing by Edmund Klamann)
TOKYO – Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano was named Japan's new trade minister Monday, replacing a politician who resigned over comments considered insensitive to evacuees in the country's nuclear crisis.
Yoshio Hachiro resigned over the weekend, after just eight days in the post, after he called the area around a crippled nuclear power plant a "town of death." The resignation was an embarrassment for the government Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda as it tries to tackle the massive task of rebuilding the tsunami-battered northeast coast.
Edano's appointment was announced by Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura.
Edano, 47, became a familiar figure on television as the government's chief spokesman during the crisis at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant.
Some 100,000 people who used to live around the plant have been evacuated and it remains unclear when they will be able to return to their homes.
Hachiro, Noda and other government ministers were visiting the Fukushima plant Thursday when Hachiro made his comments. He later told reporters he just meant to convey the seriousness of the situation and his commitment to decontaminate it so residents can return.
Announcing his resignation on Saturday, Hachiro said the remarks "rubbed the feelings of Fukushima people the wrong way" but that he did not intend to be hurtful.
Hachiro, 63, was less forthcoming about a second comment that also was criticized. According to local news reports, he joked with journalists that radiation he acquired on his clothing during his visit to Fukushima might be contagious.
Support for Noda's new government has started out strong, with an approval rating of 62.8 percent in a Kyodo poll released last Saturday. But that rating could take a hit over Hachiro's gaffe.
Past leaders have had honeymoon periods of relatively high approval ratings that declined steadily as the public grew impatient.
Noda's predecessor, Naoto Kan, had early approval ratings topping 60 percent that crashed to below 20 percent near the end of his 15-month tenure due to perceptions his government mishandled the tsunami disaster and nuclear crisis.
Edano named Japan's new trade minister Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano was named Japan's new trade minister Monday, replacing a politician who resigned over comments considered insensitive to evacuees in the country's nuclear crisis. Yoshio Hachiro resigned over the weekend, after just eight days in the post, after he called the area around a crippled nuclear power plant a "town of death." The resignation was an embarrassment for the government Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda as it tries to tackle the massive task of rebuilding the tsunami-battered northeast coast. Edano's appointment was announced by Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura. 12 Sep Across from a noodle shop in a Yokohama suburb, Hisayoshi Teramura's inn looks much like any other small lodging that dots the port city. Occasionally, it's even mistaken for a love hotel by couples hankering for some time beneath the sheets. But Teramura's place is neither a love nest nor a pit stop for tired travelers. The white and grey tiled building is a corpse hotel, its 18 deceased guests tucked up in refrigerated coffins. "We tell them we only have cold rooms," Teramura quips when asked how his staff respond to unwary lovers looking for a room. The daily rate at Lastel, as it is known, is 12,000 yen ($157). For that fee, bereaved families can check in their dead while they wait their turn in the queue for one of the city's overworked crematoriums. (Reuters) 12 Sep Two Japanese teenagers, Shota Sometani and Fumi Nikaido, won the Marcello Mastroianni Award for best young actor and actress at the 68th Venice International Film Festival on Saturday for their performance in the Japanese film "Himizu" directed by Sion Sono. Sometani, 19, and Nikaido, 16, became the first Japanese actor and actress to take home the prize, which was created in 1998. At press conference in Tokyo on Sunday, the actors expressed their joy at receiving the award. (Japan Times) 12 Sep Former Morning Musume member Ai Kago was found in her Tokyo apartment yesterday after an apparent suicide attempt, reports daily tabloid Sports Hochi (Sept. 12). Tokyo Metropolitan Police reported that medical personnel were alerted to Kago's apartment, located in the Roppongi area of Minato Ward, just before noon on Monday after members of the 23-year-old's management agency discovered her on the floor with her wrists cut. She was transferred to a local hospital, where she is now recovering. The one-time member of the popular idol group also seemed to be suffering from an overdose of tranquilizers, police said. (Tokyo Reporter) 12 Sep Even before the March 11 earthquake and tsunami struck knocking out the Fukushima nuclear plant, Aya's life was a struggle. She had divorced her abusive husband and was left on her own to care and provide for her two daughters. Now, six months after she fled her home just 9 km (6 miles) away from the radiation-spewing plant, the 26-year old single mother is barely surviving. She has no job, languishes in hiding from her violent ex-husband in temporary housing and will probably never see her home again. (Reuters) 12 Sep Former actress and stripper Minako Komukai will make her debut next month in the adult video business, reports Zakzak (Sept. 10). Minako KomukaiAV producer Alice Japan will release the "AV Actress Minako Komukai" DVD - described as containing "super hardcore" content - on October 14. Komukai will have two sex scenes in the 120-minute film (3,990 yen). Zakzak reports that Alice Japan already employs top talents like Minami Kojima and Aoi Tsukasa and likens the debut to that of former AKB48 member Rina Nakanishi (performing under the name Riko Yamaguchi), who entered the AV biz in August of last year. Mukai was arrested for the second time earlier this year for stimulant drug violations. (Tokyo Reporter)
MARSEILLE, France (Dow Jones)--Japan's finance minister came to the defense of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda Saturday, saying he should not be held accountable for the abrupt resignation earlier in the day of the nation's trade and industry minister over gaffes about nuclear issues.
The comment from new Finance Minister Jun Azumi followed media reports that Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yoshio Hachiro stepped down to take responsibility ...
MARSEILLE, France (Dow Jones)--Japan's finance minister came to the defense of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda Saturday, saying he should not be held accountable for the abrupt resignation earlier in the day of the nation's trade and industry minister over gaffes about nuclear issues.
The comment from new Finance Minister Jun Azumi followed media reports that Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yoshio Hachiro stepped down to take responsibility ...
Trade minister Yoshio Hachiro crossed swords with the media Thursday by attempting to rub his body against a journalist after touring the stricken Fukushima power plant, sources said Friday."I'll give you radiation," he reportedly said to the journalist.The apparent prank by the minister in charge of the power industry is likely to cast Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's Cabinet in a bad light as takes on the nuclear crisis triggered on March 11.After the news of his stunt broke, Hachiro said: "My memory isn't clear" and admitted approaching a reporter for a reason he didn't elaborate on.Hachiro was already in hot water for a separate remark in the morning.
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See a sample reprint in PDF format.Order a reprint of this article nowBUSINESSAUGUST 18, 2011, 1:33 A.M. ETJapan Posts Trade Surplus ArticleCommentsmore in Business »BY TAKASHI NAKAMICHI
TOKYO—Japan managed to register a second straight month of trade surplus in July, but the drop in exports accelerated somewhat due to the strong yen and falling global demand, casting a shadow on the country's still-fragile economic recovery.
Again signaling the government's worries over the yen, which continues to trade near its record high level to the detriment of exports, Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said Thursday he "will closely watch" the currency.
Last month's surplus in trade of goods totaled ¥72.5 billion ($946 million), not adjusted ...
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Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano was named Japan's new trade minister Monday, replacing a politician who resigned over comments considered insensitive to evacuees in the country's nuclear crisis. Yoshio Hachiro resigned over the weekend, after just eight days in the post, after he called the area around a crippled nuclear power plant a "town of death." The resignation was an embarrassment for the government Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda as it tries to tackle the massive task of rebuilding the tsunami-battered northeast coast. Edano's appointment was announced by Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura. 
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