As inoculations for the elderly against the novel coronavirus got underway Monday, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga stressed his desire to accelerate the acquisition of vaccines and complete the inoculation of senior citizens as soon as possible.
"I want to work to finish [the vaccinations] as soon as possible," Suga said at a meeting of the House of Representatives Committee on Audit and Oversight of Administration. He indicated that more than 100 million doses of vaccine, enough for 50 million people, were expected to be secured by the end of June.
Also Monday, emergency-level priority measures took effect in Tokyo and the prefectures of Kyoto and Okinawa. These measures allow governors to take actions similar to those implemented during a state of emergency, to prevent the spread of the virus.
"The wave of infections spreading on a global scale is extremely severe. It is vital for members of the general public to respond [to the priority measures] with a sense of urgency, to prevent further spread of the virus," the prime minister said. Suga asked business operators and the public for their cooperation in shortening opening hours at restaurants and other such establishments, as well as refraining from eating in large groups.
In Osaka Prefecture, where the daily number of confirmed infections is rapidly increasing, Suga said the situation is more severe than in January when the second state of emergency was issued. About the possibility of declaring a third state of emergency, however, Suga only said he would examine whether the priority measures were working effectively.
Regarding the release of treated radioactive water from Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc.'s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant into the sea, Suga said, "I want to make efforts to have the public understand that there is no problem with safety."
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