Japan premier's approval rating goes negative for first time

Nov 17, 2011, 9:43 GMT

Tokyo - The number of Japanese who approve of Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's performance has dropped below the numbers who disapprove for the first time, a poll conducted by Jiji Press said Thursday.

Noda's approval rating fell to 35.5 per cent in November, 6.7 percentage points down from 42.2 per cent in October, the news agency reported.

His disapproval rating was higher for the first time since he took power in early September, jumping 9.2 percentage points from October to 36 per cent.

Members of the public have been concerned about Noda's intention to take part in discussions to form a trade deal with the United States and other countries around the Pacific, observers say.

'The premier ignored many people's voices' said Minoru Morita, a political analyst, referring to a petition of 11.7 million signatures collected by farmers' groups against the deal, and another signed by about 230 lawmakers.

Critics said the government has failed to explain what the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership would entail, amid concern that it would force Japan to deregulate certain sectors.

Many people believe Noda agreed to discuss the deal under pressure from the US, Morita said.

Noda, the sixth premier in five years, is the third prime minister under the current government led by the Democratic Party of Japan.

The party won a landslide victory in the 2009 general election, ending more than a half-century of almost unbroken rule by the Liberal Democratic Party.