Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s social media post revealing she sleeps between zero and three hours a night has ignited a political controversy in Tokyo, as her cabinet’s approval rating fell to 49 percent in a July Jiji Press poll, the lowest since she took office last October. The post, which detailed her domestic chores and late-night document review, was viewed over 30 million times and prompted opposition lawmakers to question her fitness to govern, with one calling for her resignation on the grounds that chronic sleep deprivation could impair crisis management.

Within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, alarm is growing over the slide in support, which party officials attribute to the controversial revision of the Imperial House Law and what one minister called ‘heavy-handed’ management of parliament. Opposition figures, including Democratic Party for the People leader Yuichiro Tamaki, have urged the prime minister to rest more and criticised delays in tackling inflation. Deputy foreign minister Ayano Kunimitsu defended Takaichi, asking for understanding of her personal circumstances, but a middle-ranking LDP lawmaker noted that the public’s desire for female emperors was being ignored, contributing to the ratings decline.

The political turbulence coincides with a Jiji Press poll showing support for accepting more foreign workers has fallen below 60 percent for the first time in two years, with 33 percent opposed. Opposition is strongest among younger Japanese, and the most cited reason among opponents is fear of deteriorating public security. This shift comes as the foreign workforce hit a record 2.57 million, and the government is pushing for an ‘orderly society of coexistence.’ Meanwhile, the cabinet is under pressure to deliver on an election pledge to cut the consumption tax on food to zero, with some officials now considering a reduction to just 1 percent, a move one LDP official warned would be seen as half-baked and further erode support.

Separately, the National Police Agency reported that 155 officers were disciplined in the first half of 2026, with 22 dismissed, largely for sexual misconduct and theft, while the Osaka prefectural police faced sanctions over assault of suspects. On the economic front, foreign tourist spending rose 0.2 percent in the April-June quarter to ¥2.5 trillion, driven by travellers from the US and Taiwan, even as Chinese spending halved. The Japan Tourism Agency data showed British tourists spent the most per person, at over ¥456,000. The prime minister is expected to decide on the consumption tax rate in the coming weeks, with the next budget committee session likely to see renewed opposition scrutiny of her work habits and policy agenda.