Public support for Kan's Cabinet rises above 30%: Kyodo survey+

TOKYO, June 3 Kyodo -
The public support rating for the Cabinet of Prime Minister Naoto Kan rose to above 30 percent in a telephone survey released by Kyodo News on Friday, the day after he survived a no-confidence motion against his Cabinet, while respondents were split over whether Kan should step down amid growing calls for him to do so from opposition and even some ruling party lawmakers.
Support for the Cabinet stood at 33.4 percent in the poll conducted Thursday and Friday after the defeat of the motion, up from 28.1 percent in the previous survey conducted in mid-May. The disapproval rating stood at 58.8 percent, up from 57.4 percent.
On whether Kan should resign, 48.1 percent favored his resignation while 45.1 percent said he does not have to quit, according to the latest nationwide survey based on responses from 1,008 people. The survey did not cover some northeastern regions most heavily damaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
An overwhelming majority of the respondents, 89.4 percent, disapproved of moves to oust Kan by lawmakers loyal to Ichiro Ozawa, the prime minister's main rival in the ruling Democratic Party of Japan, according to the survey.
Asked what course Ozawa should follow in the future, 49.8 percent replied that he should leave the DPJ and launch a new party, compared with 25.6 percent who called for Ozawa to remain in the governing party and help establish party unity.
On Thursday, the House of Representatives rejected the no-confidence motion submitted by some opposition parties that said the prime minister lacks the capability to run the Japanese government.
Just before the vote, Kan announced his intention to resign once he makes tangible progress in containing the ongoing nuclear crisis and rebuilding Japan following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami -- remarks that apparently changed the minds of many DPJ lawmakers who had planned to vote in favor of the motion.
Survey respondents were also divided over whether the ruling DPJ should form a grand coalition with the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party. Those opposed to such a coalition accounted for 45.7 percent of the total respondents, with 44.5 percent supporting the idea.
Those opposed to a recent proposal from a government panel for a rise in the consumption tax accounted for 55.4 percent of the total respondents, against 43.3 percent for those who supported the idea. The proposal calls for raising the consumption tax gradually from the present 5 percent to 10 percent.
The approval rating for the ruling DPJ rose 5.6 percentage points from the previous survey to 25.9 percent, compared with 25.7 percent for the LDP -- exceeding the LDP's rating for the first time in seven months.
Among other parties, the support rate stood at 4.8 percent for Your Party, 3.4 percent for the New Komeito party, 2.3 percent for the Japanese Communist Party and 1.6 percent for the Social Democratic Party. Of the respondents, 32.2 percent did not support any party.
==Kyodo
2011-06-03 23:57:15