The Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly disclosed the cost of its overseas inspection trips for the first time, showing that 23 missions conducted since the current members’ terms began in April 2023 totaled about JPY 265 million. Thirteen of the trips cost more than JPY 10 million. The most expensive was an eight-day mission to Switzerland and France in February 2024, which cost about JPY 30 million. The delegation studied international One Health initiatives and programs linking public health with regional development. Travel expenses for six assembly members alone reached JPY 13.69 million.
The records also showed that accommodation expenses for speakers or vice speakers exceeded national government guidelines on 16 of the 23 trips. During the European mission, the assembly speaker at the time stayed in hotels in France costing JPY 153,000 and JPY 169,000 per night. Current Speaker Isao Kurauchi said assembly members did not request particular hotels or rooms and rejected suggestions that the accommodations were unusually luxurious. Since he became speaker in April 2025, one of three overseas trips involving accommodation expenses for the speaker exceeded the guideline, during a visit to Beijing.
The disclosure followed criticism of overseas travel by Fukuoka Prefecture officials. Governor Seitaro Hattori, who announced a third-party investigation into the prefectural government’s trips on July 30, said the same panel would also examine the assembly’s overseas activities because an internal review had not progressed sufficiently.
The assembly is also preparing to elect a new vice speaker at an extraordinary session on August 17 following the resignation of a Liberal Democratic Party member. Opposition members called for an open election without private negotiations between factions, while some younger lawmakers argued that allegations surrounding money and the allocation of leadership posts should be clarified first. Source: KBC News / RKB News
Photo: Fukuoka Now
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