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Japan’s Lost Decades: A Call for Fundamental Statecraft Reform
Remembering the VJ Day event last year Her Excellency Julia Longbottom CMG, British Ambassador to Japan said, “The UK-Japan relationship is the strongest it has been in decades, underpinned by the State visit of the Japanese Majesties in 2024.” Japan adopted the Westminster political system and the modern British social and industrial system. But after the post-war period of economic growth, Japan lost three decades of economic might. Can Britain help Japan to be reborn again so that Japan can help Better Britain, including its economy and culture, and support Britain’s global leadership at a time of worldwide crisis.
The Committee to Examine Japan’s Lost 30 Years has formulated comprehensive proposals for the fundamental reform of national governance, which will be presented at this lecture. The Committee contends that “the lost 30 years” were in fact “the 30 years we lost,” the result of political and bureaucratic inertia. At the heart of the problem lies the absence of statecraft—the strategic, long-term management of the state.
The proposals demand a decisive break from the status quo with dynastic politics. They call for deep political reform, including the prime minister’s unchecked power to dissolve the parliament, and advocate for the construction of a new framework of statecraft that unites political leadership with effective executive governance.
Date:
7 March 2026, 11:00
Venue:
Manor Road Building, Manor Road OX1 3UQ
Venue Details:
The Lecture Theatre
Speakers:
Dr. Takashi Inoue (The Japan Public Relations Society),
Charles Harman (The Council of the University of Oxford),
Waichi Sekiguchi (MM Research Institute)
Organiser:
Yukihisa Fujita (Former Vice Finance Minister Japan, Former Member of Japanese Parliament, Diplomat)
Organiser contact email address:
yukihisa.fujita@politics.ox.ac.uk
Host:
Yukihisa Fujita (Former Vice Finance Minister Japan, Former Member of Japanese Parliament, Diplomat)
Booking required?:
Required
Booking email:
yukihisa.fujita@politics.ox.ac.uk
Audience:
Public
Editor:
Naomi Sabel
