Tokyo: Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said on Monday that his top priority was to prevent the frail economy from slipping back into recession by passing budget bills for the current financial year and the next.
Speaking at a news conference in Tokyo, Hatoyama also vowed to find a mutually acceptable solution to a row with the United States over the relocation of a US Marine base on the southern island of Okinawa within several months.
"With the feeling that the economy must not be allowed to go into a double dip, that we will not allow it to do so... we compiled emergency measures and a second extra budget at the end of last year," Hatoyama told reporters.
Balance
"We want to bring this second extra budget into effect as soon as possible," he said, adding that next year's budget should also be dealt with quickly.
Japan's financial year runs to the end of March.
Striking a balance between reining in the country's massive public debt and keeping the economy out of recession has proved a headache for Hatoyama's government, which has been locked in weeks of wrangling over the package.
The 77-year-old finance minister, Hirohisa Fujii, was admitted to hospital for tests last month, telling reporters he was "worn out".
Hatoyama's Democratic Party was swept to power in an August election, but his voter ratings have slid to below 50 per cent as doubts grow over his ability to manage the fragile economy and smooth frayed ties with close security ally Washington.
