Japan Lower House OKs 28.9-T.-Yen Extra Budget

Tokyo, Nov. 29 (Jiji Press)--Japan's House of Representatives on Tuesday passed the government's fiscal 2022 second supplementary budget plan that calls for general-account spending of 28,922.2 billion yen to finance an economic package featuring measures to fight soaring prices.

The lower chamber of parliament approved the extra budget by a majority vote, supported mainly by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, its coalition partner, Komeito, and the opposition Democratic Party for the People.

The ruling coalition aims to enact the extra budget as early as Friday after deliberations at the House of Councillors, the upper chamber.

The extra budget includes more than 6 trillion yen in spending to curb the burden of fuel costs that have soared since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The government focuses on energy and food in its fight against soaring prices, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said at a meeting of the Lower House Budget Committee earlier on Tuesday. "We're responding speedily and humbly," he said.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]