Prime Minister Naoto Kan handed Goshi Hosono a big job--state minister in charge of the accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant--but he didn't give him much to do it with, a small staff and even less autonomy.
Prime Minister Naoto Kan handed Goshi Hosono a big job--state minister in charge of the accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant--but he didn't give him much to do it with, a small staff and even less autonomy.
One major hurdle is Banri Kaieda, the minister of economy, trade and industry. In charge of nuclear energy policy, he is determined not to give up any authority.
Certainly, Kan virtually guaranteed a turf war when he abruptly named Hosono as state minister and didn't clearly define the division of roles between the two men.
Unlike Kaieda, Hosono does not have an extensive staff of experts to assist him in his new job.
In a June 29 post on his personal blog, Kan explained why he appointed Hosono. Hosono was serving as special adviser to Kan for the Fukushima nuclear accident prior to the appointment.
"He has the greatest awareness of the problems that now face the administration of nuclear energy," Kan wrote. "I appointed Hosono with the expectation that he would do his best to create a structure to prevent another nuclear accident and not leave any problems to the future."
In instructions Kan passed on to Hosono, the new minister was told his main responsibilities were: 1) resolving the accident at the nuclear power plant; 2) implementing measures to prevent a recurrence, including organizational changes; and 3) coordinating efforts to monitor the environment for radiation and to check on the health of workers at the plant.
Kan placed special attention on the need for organizational changes.
At a news conference June 27 after the new Cabinet appointments were made, Kan said about the nuclear energy administration, "The time has come to discuss whether the current organizational structure is appropriate."
One reason Kan appointed Hosono as a state minister under the Cabinet Office independent from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) is because, as he told close aides, "There is fierce resistance from the electric power industry and METI."
With the appointment, Kan hopes to trigger discussions for separating the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency from METI.
However, because the appointment of Hosono was made so unexpectedly, preparations to establish a support structure for the new minister were inadequate.
Hosono's office was set up within the Cabinet Office. Serving as aides will be Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Tetsuo Fukuyama and Yasuhiro Sonoda, a parliamentary secretary at the Cabinet Office.
However, neither Fukuyama nor Sonoda is much of an expert on nuclear energy administration.
Hosono is also short-staffed. The only staff are holdovers from when he was Kan's adviser as well as officials dispatched from the Consumer Affairs Agency. Those latter officials were assigned to Hosono because he also concurrently serves as state minister in charge of consumer affairs.
Because the new office has so little relevant expertise, one source said, "We will have to ask METI to send over officials," a situation likely foster dependency, not independence.
To make matters worse, Hosono has no legal authority to issue instructions or orders.
After a Cabinet meeting June 28, Kan, Hosono and Kaieda discussed the division of labor. The decision was made to have Kaieda continue to handle overall nuclear energy administration as well as the review of the basic energy plan.
At a news conference after the meeting, Kaieda made clear he would not cede authority to Hosono and said, "I will issue the instructions and orders based on laws and Cabinet orders."
However, METI officials, in their weakened state, are not prepared to resist efforts by Kan to detach NISA from the ministry. One high-ranking METI official said, "It is unavoidable considering public opinion right now."
Hosono has tried to stress the importance of his independence as state minister. "Because I am not directly connected to a specific ministry such as METI, I will be able to make various political decisions," he said.
However, because of the insufficient staffing and lack of legal authority, one source at the Prime Minister's Official Residence cast doubt on what Hosono could actually achieve.
"Even if Hosono drew up a blueprint, the prime minister will end up giving instructions to Kaieda," the source said. "If that is the case, was there any point in appointing a state minister in the first place?"
(This article was written by Nanae Kurashige and Tetsuo Kogure.)