Japan's parliament decided on Friday to extend its current session for eight days until July 25 as the ruling bloc needs more time to pass key bills.
The Diet debate schedule has become packed after a stalemate following an opposition boycott that started in late June over a bill to slash the number of House of Representatives seats sponsored by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party.
By prolonging the original 150-day session beyond its closing on Friday, the ruling coalition will pursue the enactment of a bill to designate a "second capital" to back up Tokyo in times of disasters or other emergencies and promote decentralization.
The second capital law will serve as a key scheme for the JIP's drive to reorganize the western city of Osaka, where the party has its stronghold, into a metropolis like Tokyo by introducing special wards.
During the extended parliamentary session, the ruling coalition also aims at passing a bill to revise the law on referendums for amending the Constitution, in preparation for a future first national vote to revise the supreme law, a long-held goal for the LDP led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
It will be the first extension of a parliamentary session since 2024. The more powerful lower house voted on the extension plan, with the ruling bloc holding far more than two-thirds of its 465 seats.
The parliamentary standoff ended last week after the ruling coalition promised the opposition it would not seek to pass the seat-cut bill during the ongoing session.
