Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi opened a 69-day Diet session on Oct. 5 with a policy speech focused on economic stagnation, industrial investment, China relations, security and demographic decline. Her government plans to reduce the consumption tax on food and beverages from 8% to 1% for two years beginning in April 2027, creating an estimated 10 trillion yen (S$81 billion) revenue shortfall whose funding she did not specify. The coalition of Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party controls more than two-thirds of the lower house but remains a minority in the upper house. The session runs through Dec. 12 and is expected to include 21 bills, while opposition lawmakers challenge Cabinet appointments and other government policies.