Politics and Administration in Japan

Abstract

AbstractThis chapter examines the relationship between ‘politics’ and ‘administration’ in Japan from the perspective of two relationships: (1) the executive system and the policy process, and (2) the executive and civil service systems. From the first perspective, this chapter underlines the strengthened role of political parties in the policy process as opposed to traditional bureaucratic leadership. Bureaucrats and politicians competing and cooperating in the policy process have been highlighted in the literature as a characteristic of Japanese politics. Since the 2000s, the influence of the Prime Minister’s Office has increased with the strengthening of its leadership over the ruling party and bureaucracy and has led policy. Regarding the relationship between the executive and civil service systems, political appointments were institutionally limited. However, in collaborative political-bureaucratic relations, senior bureaucrats have coordinated the policy process with politicians. The new procedure for appointing senior bureaucrats established in 2014 increased the tendency to emphasise the political responsiveness of the bureaucrats. Finally, the relationship between politics and the administration of local governments is explained through the network of human resource exchange in intergovernmental relations and the choice of local leaders.