Asked about the government's timing in declaring a state of emergency in response to the spread of the novel coronavirus, 81% of respondents in a nationwide opinion poll said the move was "too late." Only 15% said the timing was "appropriate" and 1% said it was "too early."
The Yomiuri Shimbun conducted the poll by telephone on Saturday and Sunday.
Meanwhile, the approval rate for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Cabinet was polled at 42%, down 6 percentage points from the previous poll last month. The disapproval rate was 47%, up 7 percentage points. It was the first time since May 2018 that the disapproval rate exceeded the approval rate.
Approval of the declaration of a state of emergency was at 83%. However, 33% of respondents said asking people to refrain from going out was "enough," while 59% said it was "not enough."
Regarding the plan to provide 300,000 yen in cash to households whose income has declined to a certain level as an economic relief measure, 58% said it's "not enough," while 26% said it's "appropriate" and 5% said it's "too much." However, 82% of respondents approved of the Tokyo metropolitan government's decision to pay out subsidies after it asked a wide range of businesses to shutter their offices or stores.
On the government's decision to distribute two fabric masks to every household, 73% of respondents did not approve.
Support in the poll was highest for the Liberal Democratic Party at 34%, followed by the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan at 5%. About 44% did not support any particular party.
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