An Upper House committee discusses a bill on the establishment of a secondary capital, in Tokyo on Wednesday. | JIJI
Jul 23, 2026
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi entered the final days of an extended parliamentary session Thursday still trying to secure passage of legislation establishing a secondary capital, while talks on immediate economic relief remained stalled.
The bill, under debate in the Upper House, helped trigger the government’s decision to extend the session by eight days through Saturday. It would create a framework for designating a city capable of temporarily assuming key functions from Tokyo during a major disaster while serving as a regional economic hub.
For the Kansai-based Japan Innovation Party (JIP), which has long promoted Osaka as Japan’s “second capital,” passage of the bill would be a tangible reward for joining the governing coalition. For Takaichi, however, it follows a bruising attempt to advance another signature JIP demand of cutting Lower House seats by roughly 10%.
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