At a post-Cabinet meeting press conference on the 16th, Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy Jōnai Minoru (城内 実) said there had been no consideration of postponing the vote when the Bank of Japan decided to raise interest rates in June. He reiterated this point as the Cabinet Office's explanation.
At a post-Cabinet meeting press conference held on the 16th, Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy Jōnai Minoru (城内 実) explicitly said there had been no consideration of postponing the vote when the Bank of Japan decided to raise interest rates in June. He indicated that the remarks were consistent with the Cabinet Office's explanation.
The remarks have been reported as intended to deny the possibility that consideration was given to postponing the vote before or after the Bank of Japan's monetary policy meeting. According to people familiar with the matter, the explanation was given to correct the facts as the government's position.
The reports were carried by the Japanese-language editions of Reuters and Infoseek, both of which reported substantially the same content. Regarding whether there was any specific discussion of the conduct of the Bank of Japan's June meeting, the situation is now awaiting subsequent official announcements and additional explanations.