The Abe Administration and the Rise of the Prime Ministerial Executive (Routledge Focus on Asia)

"With the advent of the second Abe administration, the question of 'who leads' in Japan has become much easier to answer -- the Prime Minister and his executive office, backed by a substantial policy support apparatus. This rise of the 'prime ministerial executive' is therefore one of the most important structural changes in Japan's political system in the post-war period. This book explains how the prime ministerial executive operates undifer the Abe administration and how it is contributing to Abe's unprecedented policymaking authority. It analyses how reform of central government undifer Prime Ministers Nakasone, Hashimoto and Koizumi has produced the necessary institutional innovations to allow the prime minister to assert a more authoritative policy leadifership, turning Japan's traditional, decentralised and bottom-up politics on its head. Comparing the Westminster and presidential systems of governance and applying them to Japan's contemporary politics, the book shows that whilst elements of both can be found, neither captures the essence of the transformation involved in the rise of the prime ministerial executive. Providing a thorough analysis of power in Japanese politics, this book will be useful to students and scholars of Japanese Politics, Comparative Politics and Asian Studies."--Provided by publisher With the advent of the second Abe administration, the question of 'who governs' in Japan became much clearer to define. Namely, the Prime Minister and his executive office, backed by a substantial policy support apparatus, has grown considerably over the past decade. This has led to one of the most important structural changes in Japan's political process in the post-war period - the rise of the 'prime ministerial executive'. The book highlights the main factors behind this rise of the 'prime ministerial executive' in Japan, explaining how it operates under the Abe administration and how it is contributing to Abe's unprecedented policymaking authority. It demonstrates how reform of central government under Prime Ministers Nakasone, Hashimoto and Koizumi has produced the necessary constitutional innovations to allow the Prime Minister to assert policy leadership in a much more prominent way, turning Japan's traditional, decentralised and bottom-up politics on its head. Comparing the Westminster and Presidential systems of governance and applying them to the Japanese context, it nevertheless shows that despite recent changes, elements of both remain and this continues to define the Japanese style of government. Providing a thorough analysis of how power relations have been significantly altered in recent years, this book will be useful to students and scholars of Japanese Politics, Comparative Politics and Asian Studies The book highlights the main factors behind this rise of the ‘prime ministerial executive’ in Japan, explaining how it operates under the Abe administration and is contributing to Abe’s unprecedented policymaking authority. Providing an analysis of Japanese power politics, it will be useful to students of Japanese Politics and Comparative Politics. Cover -- Title -- Copyright -- Contents -- Acknowledgements -- 1 Introduction -- 2 The rise of the prime ministerial executive and the process of administrative reform -- 3 Reinforcing the power of the prime ministerial executive under the second Abe administration -- 4 Westminster or presidential? -- 5 Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Index The Rise Of The Prime Ministerial Executive And The Process Of Administrative Reform -- Reinforcing The Power Of The Prime Ministerial Executive Under The Second Abe Administration -- Westminster Or Presidential? Aurelia George Mulgan. Includes Bibliographical References (pages [102]-113) And Index.