Japan's Edano to replace gaffe-prone minister (Reuters)

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda chose on Monday former top government spokesman Yukio Edano as the new trade minister, acting to limit the damage to his new cabinet after the previous minister quit over gaffes.

Edano will be heading the trade ministry that also oversees energy policy, a key role as Japan works to bring under control the world's worst nuclear disaster in 25 years after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami set off meltdowns at the Fukushima nuclear plant.

Edano, former chief cabinet secretary under the previous premier, Naoto Kan, is considered to have a good understanding of the nuclear issues and became the government's face as the radiation crisis unfolded with the frequent broadcasting of his briefings on the plant's status.

"Public support for Noda's cabinet is unlikely to rise with Edano taking over, but the amount of damage has likely been minimized," said Tetsuro Kato, a political science professor at Waseda University, adding Edano was a safe choice for Noda.

Previous trade minister Yoshio Hachiro quit on Saturday, only after eight days in his job, following reports that he joked with reporters about radiation from the Fukushima nuclear plant during his trip to the affected area.

Noda, who took over as Japan's sixth premier in five years at the start of this month, needed to act quickly because the blunders gave the opposition that controls the parliament's upper house ammunition to attack the new cabinet.

The 54-year-old former finance minister, who has emphasized the importance of uniting the fractious ruling party, is set to address parliament in a policy speech on Tuesday, which will be followed by questions from opposition leaders.

UNDER PRESSURE

Noda must end the radiation crisis while tackling many challenges, including rebuilding after the March disaster and curbing huge public debt, and will need opposition cooperation to achieve that.

One of the near-term tests will come next month when the cabinet is expected to prepare and submit to parliament an extra budget of about 10 trillion yen ($128.6 billion) needed to start full-fledged reconstruction in the disaster-struck areas.

The public will be keen to see progress in bringing damaged nuclear reactors at the Fukushima plant to a safe shutdown by January, the process which Edano will oversee.

Edano, 47, has said that Japan will need to review its nuclear power policy from scratch after the Fukushima accident tattered public trust in atomic energy.

"Mr. Edano has been deeply involved not only in reconstruction issues after the March 11 disaster but also in the issue of Fukushima, so that record must have been valued," Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura told a news conference.

Edano will be charged with overseeing power utilities' stress tests to see how well prepared their nuclear reactors are to withstand the impact of extreme events. Japan's nuclear safety watchdog will be under the trade ministry until April.

Currently, only 11 out of 54 nuclear reactors are operating after others have been unable to restart following maintenance checks due to heightened public worries.

Noda's government started out with public support ratings of more than 60 percent in a sign the Japanese public was willing to give the new leader the benefit of the doubt despite bitter disappointment with his predecessor Kan.

Kan's ratings plunged from similar highs to less than 20 percent at the end of his 15-month tenure after he drew fire for his cabinet's handling of the March disaster and the resulting nuclear crisis. ($1 = 77.750 Japanese Yen)

(Additional reporting by Shinichi Saoshiro; Editing by Tomasz Janowski and Yoko Nishikawa)

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Edano named Japan's new trade minister (AP)

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.

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Edano Picked as Japan's New Industry Minister - Wall Street Journal

TOKYO—Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on Monday attempted to draw a line under a scandal that has rocked his fledgling administration, appointing popular lawmaker and former government spokesman Yukio Edano as the new industry minister after his predecessor made embarrassing remarks about the country's nuclear crisis.

Mr. Edano, 47, will succeed Yoshio Hachiro, who quit on Saturday only eight days into the job after he referred to the evacuated areas around the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant as "a town of death" and allegedly joked about radiation with reporters.

The remarks were sharply criticized by opposition parties and were an unwelcome distraction for Mr. Noda as he attempts to focus on repairing the government's finances and moving ahead with the reconstruction of the quake-hit northeast.

Acting swiftly to try to contain the damage, Mr. Noda immediately accepted Mr. Hachiro's resignation and made a public apology on Sunday, the six-month anniversary of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that triggered the nation's worst-ever nuclear accident.

Moving on from the scandal is seen as crucial for the Noda government as ministers are set to face on Tuesday their first parliamentary session since the change of administration to discuss a supplementary budget for quake reconstruction.

Any lingering whiff of scandal could allow opposition parties to renew their criticism that the ruling Democratic Party of Japan is inexperienced and incompetent—a line they pursued against Mr. Noda's predecessor Naoto Kan—at a time when the new premier is looking to build consensus and clear legislative gridlock.

Support from the opposition-controlled upper house is seen as necessary for the government to smoothly pass the budget bill as well as legislation to fix Japan's social security system and proposed tax increases.

Mr. Hachiro's resignation seems like deja-vu for the ruling Democratic Party of Japan. Two months ago, reconstruction minister Ryu Matsumoto quit after remarks about the disaster-hit areas that were deemed offensive.

Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Edano was the public face of the government in the aftermath of the March 11 disasters and enjoyed broad public approval for his apparently tireless approach to holding regular briefings on live television. In recent public opinion polls, he was frequently mentioned as one of the most desirable candidates for the country's next prime minister.

The choice of Mr. Edano as industry minister—a portfolio that includes the country's nuclear power industry—also reflects the need for an experienced hand to deal with the task of rebuilding public trust in the government's energy policy after the Fukushima Daiichi disaster.

The government must tread a course between widespread public concern about the safety of nuclear power following the disaster and the need to restart idled reactors to prevent power shortages next year.

Write to Mitsuru Obe at mitsuru.obe@dowjones.com

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Edano named Japan's new trade minister

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.
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