Ken Saitō

Japanese politician

齋藤健

Incumbent

Assumed office
14 December 2023Prime MinisterFumio KishidaPreceded byYasutoshi NishimuraMinister of JusticeIn office
11 November 2022 – 13 September 2023Prime MinisterFumio KishidaPreceded byYasuhiro HanashiSucceeded byRyuji KoizumiMinister of Agriculture, Forestry and FisheriesIn office
3 August 2017 – 2 October 2018Prime MinisterShinzō AbePreceded byYūji YamamotoSucceeded byTakamori YoshikawaMember of the House of Representatives

Incumbent

Assumed office
31 August 2009ConstituencySouthern Kanto PR
(2009-2012)
Chiba 7th
(2012-present) Personal detailsBorn

齋藤健 (Saitō Ken)

(1959-06-14) 14 June 1959 (age 64)
Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, JapanPolitical partyLiberal DemocraticAlma materUniversity of Tokyo
Harvard University (MBA)

Ken Saitō (齋藤健, Saitō Ken, born 14 June 1959) is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party who has been the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry since December 2023. Also serving in the Japanese House of Representatives, Saito served as the Minister of Justice from November 2022 to September 2023 and was the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries from August 2017 to October 2018.

Career

Saito has been a member of the House of Representatives since 2009.^[1] Saito is a member of the Ishiba faction, led by Shigeru Ishiba, which was critical of the Abe administration.^[2] In his position as agriculture minister, he continued to keep a tariff hike on foreign beef.^[3] On 6 June 2023, the CDP submitted a censure motion against Saito, who was justice minister, in a bid to delay an immigration bill that sought to overhaul the asylum process.^[4]

As industry minister, Saito oversaw the expansion of Japan's semiconductor industry, through government subsidies to companies.^[5] On 10 April 2024, Saito was among the guests invited to the state dinner hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden in honor of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the White House.^[6]

References

^ "Ken Saito (The Cabinet) | Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet". japan.kantei.go.jp. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
^ Bosack, Michael MacArthur (5 August 2017). "Abe's Cabinet Reshuffle, Explained". The Diplomat.
^ "New farm minister not interested in rethink of U.S. beef import curbs". The Japan Times. 9 August 2017.
^ Ninivaggi, Gabriele (6 June 2023). "CDP submits censure motion in bid to delay immigration bill". The Japan Times. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
^ Author, No (4 March 2024). "Japan in the midst of a semiconductor plant construction rush". The Japan Times. Retrieved 29 April 2024. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
^ White House Releases State Dinner Guest List White House, press release of 10 April 2024.

Political offices
Preceded by Yasuhiro Hanashi	Minister of Justice 2022–2023	Succeeded by Ryuji Koizumi
Preceded by Yasutoshi Nishimura	Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry 2023–present	Succeeded by Incumbent

Authority control databases
International	ISNI VIAF WorldCat
National	United States Japan

v t e Second Kishida Cabinet (Second Reshuffle) (since 13 September 2023)
Fumio Kishida (LDP) Junji Suzuki (until 14 December 2023, LDP) Takeaki Matsumoto (since 14 December 2023, LDP) Ryuji Koizumi (LDP) Yōko Kamikawa (LDP) Shun'ichi Suzuki (LDP) Masahito Moriyama (LDP) Keizō Takemi (LDP) Ichiro Miyashita (until 14 December 2023, LDP) Tetsushi Sakamoto (since 14 December 2023, LDP) Yasutoshi Nishimura (until 14 December 2023, LDP) Ken Saitō (since 14 December 2023, LDP) Tetsuo Saito (Komeito) Shintaro Ito (LDP) Minoru Kihara (LDP) Hirokazu Matsuno (until 14 December 2023, LDP) Yoshimasa Hayashi (since 14 December 2023, LDP) Taro Kono (LDP) Shinako Tsuchiya (LDP) Yoshifumi Matsumura (LDP) Ayuko Kato (LDP) Yoshitaka Shindō (LDP) Sanae Takaichi (LDP) Hanako Jimi (LDP)