' g: u) ?% Z$ U5 ]% X% K" a * c& D3 u$ _( v0 N' S/ ~( RTOKYO – Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda is reshuffling his Cabinet in a bid to win more cooperation from the opposition in raising the sales tax. * T% n: {* \$ V1 {% q& B, ?5.39.217.76His ministers resigned en masse Friday to pave the way for a new Cabinet to be formed later in the day. / s$ q/ b$ p- x" A" Ktvb now,tvbnow,bttvbPublic broadcaster NHK said Noda would retain 12 of 17 positions, including the finance and foreign ministers.tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb' n7 ^5 R( _6 c' K4 T
The new lineup is expected to exclude two ministers who were criticized by the opposition for making inappropriate comments.tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb8 ]: K" x- A# ^, ?3 s- a. F- Z; v
Noda has promised to submit a bill in the next parliamentary session to raise the 5 percent sales tax to help rein in the country's bulging fiscal deficit.
