Mio Sugita, a ruling party lawmaker who effectively oversees political ethics and has a track record of making discriminatory remarks against sexual minorities, opted to play her cards close to her chest when opposition parties tried to draw her out on her past controversial comments.
The Lower House approved a record 107.6 trillion yen ($936.74 billion) draft budget for fiscal 2022 on Feb. 22 that had the backing of an opposition party, which has not been seen in more than 40 years.