Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda has dissolved parliament ahead of a general election next month. Mr Noda, in power since August 2011, will face newly-elected opposition leader Shinzo Abe in the polls. Mr Abe’s party is expected to win the most seats but the election is seen as unlikely to deliver a clear winner. Mr Noda has lost support over his sales tax rise and handling of the Fukushima aftermath, while Mr Abe is an ex-PM who struggled to connect with the public. Support ratings for both the ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) and the opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) are low. A number of other smaller parties draw some support – controversial former Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara has formed one, so too former DPJ stalwart Ichiro Ozawa. Toru Hashimoto, the Osaka governor, is also forming a political party. Polls show almost half of all voters are undecided, indicating that the next government will likely be a coalition. “This is an election to decide on the nation’s direction – to go forward or to go backward,” Mr Noda said of the election set for 16 December. “We are determined to do our best to have the Democratic Party of Japan at the helm of the nation… and fight it out to move politics forward,” he added.
