Foreign Press Center/Japan

October 31, 2005

On October 31, 2005, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi reshuffled his third Cabinet, a coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and the New Komeito. The profiles of the reshuffled third Koizumi Cabinet members are as follows:

Prime Minister
Koizumi, Junichiro (63) (LDP)
Twelve-term member of the House of Representatives from Kanagawa-11; Prime Minister; Health and Welfare Minister (three times under the second Hashimoto, Uno, and Takeshita Cabinets); Posts and Telecommunications Minister; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Finance; Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Finance
Keio University
Born January 8, 1942

Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications
Minister of State for Privatization of the Postal Services
Takenaka, Heizo (54)(LDP)
One-term member of the House of Councillors (proportional representation); Minister of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications; State Minister for Fiscal Policy and Privatization of the Postal Services ; State Minister for Financial Services and Economic and Fiscal Policy; Professor, Faculty of Policy Management, Keio University; Member, Economic Strategy Council (advisory council established by the late Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi);
Hitotsubashi University
Born March 3, 1951

Minister of Justice
Sugiura, Seiken (71)
Six-term member of the House of Representatives from Aichi-12; Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary; Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Judicial Affairs; Director, LDP Finance Division
Attorney-at-law
University of Tokyo
Born July 26, 1934

Minister for Foreign Affairs
Aso, Taro (65) (LDP)
Nine-term member of the House of Representatives from Fukuoka-8; Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications Minister; State Minister for Economic and Fiscal Policy; Chairman, LDP Policy Research Council; State Minister for Economic Planning; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs
Gakushuin University
Born September 20, 1940

Finance Minister
Tanigaki, Sadakazu (60) (LDP)
Nine-term member of the House of Representatives from Kyoto-5; Finance Minister; Chairman, Financial Reconstruction Commission (State Minister); Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Finance; Director-General, Science and Technology Agency (State Minister); Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Rules and Administration
University of Tokyo
Born March 7, 1945

Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Kosaka, Kenji (59) (LDP)
Six-term member of the House of Representatives from Nagano-1;Deputy Chairman, LDP Diet Affairs Committee; Senior Director, House of Representatives Committee on Rules and Administration; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Financial Affairs
Keio University
Born March 12, 1946

Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare
Kawasaki, Jiro (58) (LDP)
Eight-term member of the House of Representatives from Mie-1; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Rules and Administration; Deputy Chairman, LDP Diet Affairs Committee; Transport Minister
Keio University
Born November 15, 1947

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
Nakagawa, Shoichi (52) (LDP)
Eight-term member of the House of Representatives from Hokkaido-11; Economy, Trade and Industry Minister (twice under the Koizumi cabinet); Chairman, LDP Party Organization Headquarters; Chairman, LDP Public Relations Headquarters; Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries Minister
University of Tokyo
Born July 19, 1953

Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry
Nikai, Toshihiro (66) (LDP)
Eight-term member of the House of Representatives from Wakayama-3; Director-General, LDP Election Bureau; Chairman, House of Representatives Special Committee on Postal Privatization; Transport Minister and the Director-General of the Hokkaido Development Agency
Chuo University
Born February 17, 1939

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport
Kitagawa, Kazuo (52) (New Komeito)
Six-term member of the House of Representatives from Osaka-16; Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister; Chairman, New Komeito Policy Research Council; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Soka University
Born March 2, 1953

Minister of the Environment
Minister of State for Okinawa and Northern Territories Affairs Minister in Charge of Global Environmental Problems
Koike, Yuriko (Ms) (53) (LDP)
Five-term member of the House of Representatives from Tokyo-10; Environment Minister and State Minister for Okinawa and Northern Territories Affairs; Environment Minister; State Secretary for Economic Planning, Economic Planning Agency; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology
Cairo University
Born July 15, 1952

Chief Cabinet Secretary
Abe, Shinzo (51) (LDP)
Five-term member of the House of Representatives from Yamaguchi-4; Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary; Secretary for Foreign Minister; LDP Secretary-General; Director, LDP Youth Division
Seikei University
Born September 21, 1954

Chairman of National Public Safety Commission
Minister of State for Disaster Management
Minister of State for National Emergency Legislation
Kutsukake, Tetsuo (76) (LDP)
Four-term member of the House of Councillors from Ishikawa; Vice-Minister for the Environment; Parliamentary Secretary for International Economy, Trade and Industry; Director-General, LDP International Bureau
University of Tokyo
Born September 12, 1929

Minister of State for Defense
Nukaga, Fukushiro (61) (LDP)
Eight-term member of the House of Representatives from Ibaraki-2; State Minister for Defense; State Minister for Financial Services and Economic and Fiscal Policy; Parliamentary Vice-Minister for International Trade and Industry; Vice Chairman, LDP Diet Affairs Committee; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Finance; Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary
Waseda University
Born January 11, 1944

Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy
Minister of State for Financial Services
Yosano, Kaoru (67) (LDP)
Nine-term member of the House of Representatives from Tokyo-1; Chairman, LDP Policy Research Council ; Minister of International Trade and Industry; Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary; Minister of Education, Science and Culture; Acting Chairman, LDP Policy Research Council; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Rules and Administration
University of Tokyo
Born August 22, 1938

Minister of State for Regulatory Reform
Minister of State for Administrative Reform
Minister of State for Special Zones for Structural Reform
Minister of State for Regional Revitalization
Chuma, Kouki (69) (LDP)
Nine-term member of the House of Representatives from Osaka-1; Chairman, LDP Research Commission on Local Government Administration; Senior Vice-Minister for Land, Infrastructure and Transport; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs; Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Environment
University of Tokyo
Born October 8, 1936

Minister of State for Science and Technology Policy
Minister of State for Food Safety
Minister of State for Information Technology
Matsuda, Iwao (68) (LDP)
Two-term member of the House of Councillors from Gifu; Chairman, House of Councillors Research Committee on International Affairs; Vice-Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry; Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Education, Science and CultureUniversity of Tokyo
Born May 19, 1937

Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Measures for Declining Birthrate
Minister of State for Gender Equality
Inoguchi, Kuniko (Ms)(53) (LDP)
One-term member of the House of Representatives from Tokyo (proportional representation); Professor, Political Science, Faculty of Law, Sophia University; Visiting Professor, Department of Political Science, Australian National University; Ambassador to the Permanent Representative of Japan to the Conference of Disarmament;
Sophia University
Born May 3, 1952