JIP Sets Policy Goals for Talks with LDP; Proposed Ban on Corporate Donations Could Be a Sticking Point

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:43 JST, October 17, 2025

The Japan Innovation Party has 12 categories of policy measures that it seeks to implement through discussions with the Liberal Democratic Party.

The categories are divided into those on which agreement is likely to be reached quickly, such as free high school tuition — already extensively debated by both parties — and medium- to long-term issues like the abolition of political donations by corporations and groups. With the extraordinary Diet session convening Tuesday, the two parties will likely prioritize certain items to build a consensus.

“We don’t intend to proceed based on momentum alone. We want to focus on keeping promises and achieving results,” JIP coleader Fumitake Fujita said Thursday at a press conference, indicating his party’s intent to stick to realizing its policies in negotiations with the LDP.

The JIP proposed timelines for some of these categories with the intention of “immediately touting their accomplishment once they are achieved,” according to a veteran JIP official.

One such item is the secondary capital concept, which JIP representative Hirofumi Yoshimura has declared “an absolute condition” for joining a coalition, alongside social security reform. The party views the initiative as an extension of its flagship Osaka metropolis plan and demanded the passage of related bills during next year’s ordinary Diet session.

The JIP’s demand extends beyond short-term policies. The party sees Komeito’s dramatic breakaway from the LDP as a favorable opportunity, leading one veteran JIP member to say, “We should also push policies that require time to implement once we have formed a coalition.”

A reform of the Central Social Insurance Medical Council, which advises the health, labor and welfare minister, is among the policies that would need some time to be realized.

In regard to corporate and group donations, the LDP has insisted on keeping the practice but enhancing transparency of political funding from such donations. In contrast, the JIP, which has taken a strict stance on politics and money issues, argues for their prohibition.

Given that Komeito’s demand for stricter regulations on this matter was a trigger for the breakaway, the JIP executives are aware that a compromise will be necessary. They envision establishing a consultative body and treating it as a medium-to-long-term issue.