The government has announced its final plan to reform the Science Council of Japan, the country's leading academic body.

Economic Revitalization Minister Goto Shigeyuki, who is in charge of the matter, made the announcement at a news conference on Tuesday.

Japan's industry ministry has come out with a draft action plan that would mark a clear departure from the nuclear power policy the government has taken since the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident.

The ministry presented the plan in an online meeting of an advisory panel on Monday.

Japan's health ministry has decided on a list of pre-existing conditions for prioritizing those receiving coronavirus vaccinations.

The ministry plans to start inoculating medical workers around late February, followed by the elderly in late March, and then people with underlying health conditions.

The Japanese government has come up with a concrete action plan to achieve net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050.

The Committee on the Growth Strategy adopted the plan on Friday. It says measures to deal with climate change are not a costly impediment for the economy but an opportunity for new growth.

Lawmakers from Japan's ruling party have approved the Defense Ministry's plan to construct two new vessels equipped with the Aegis anti-ballistic missile system.

Defense Minister Kishi Nobuo explained the plan at a defense and security affairs meeting of the Liberal Democratic Party on Wednesday.

Japan's Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide says he hopes to arrange a phone meeting with US President-elect Joe Biden, and a visit to the United States.

Suga told reporters on Monday that he extends warm congratulations to Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris. He said Japan and the US are allies that share universal values such as peace and freedom.

Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide has ruled out new nuclear plants or new reactors for Japan at this point, as the country aims to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050.

Suga was answering questions from Constitutional Democratic Party leader Edano Yukio in the Lower House Budget Committee on Wednesday.

Voters in the western Japanese city of Osaka have voted to reject a plan to reorganize the city into four special wards similar to those in Tokyo. This means the current system will remain in place.

What's known as the "Osaka metropolis plan" called for abolishing the ordinance-designated city and creating four special wards, effective January 1, 2025.

NHK projects that residents of the western Japanese city of Osaka have voted to maintain the city's current structure.

They voted down a plan to transfer some major functions to the prefecture and consolidation of the bureaucracy into a structure similar to Tokyo's.

A task force is examining reactions from local residents to the Japanese government's plan on how to dispose of the radioactive wastewater stored at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant that was hit by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Kajiyama Hiroshi has reiterated his intention to decide on the disposal plan soon, so that the scrapping of the plant will not be delayed.

A nationwide group of Japanese fisheries has opposed releasing diluted radioactive wastewater from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant into the sea.

The group's president, Kishi Hiroshi, spoke at the 7th government hearing in Tokyo on Thursday.

Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide has instructed his Cabinet to accelerate work to submit a bill to set up a new government agency in charge of digitalization during the Diet session that opens early next year.

The first meeting on one of the prime minister's signature policies was held on Wednesday. All the Cabinet ministers took part.

Developers have released the details of a major construction project that's underway in central Tokyo.

It includes a 390-meter skyscraper that will be the tallest building in Japan.

Experts advising Japan's government on the coronavirus plan to set up a series of indexes to help local authorities gauge the spread of the outbreak in their regions.

Prime Minister Abe Shinzo said on Thursday that unlike in April, it is not currently necessary to declare a state of emergency.