Japan's government "is on the defensive as criticism mounts over the spiralling cost to build the main stadium for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games," according to the AAP.
Newly appointed Olympics Minister Toshiaki Endo acknowledged on Tuesday the latest estimate of 252B yen ($2.04B) represented a "substantial increase" from the initial estimate of 162.5B yen. Opposition lawmakers "demanded answers from Endo and other officials."
Education & Sports Minister Hakubun Shimomura "reiterated the government's position that it's too late to make changes, and still finish in time for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, the first event scheduled for the planned stadium" (AAP, 7/14).
MAJORITY OPPINION: An NHK poll shows that more than 80% of people surveyed disapprove a plan to build a new Olympic stadium in Tokyo that costs more than $2B. NHK called men and women aged 20 or older across Japan for three days from Friday. A total of 1,024 people, or 67%, responded. Eighty-one percent of respondents said they disapprove of the plan to build the stadium without changing its design. Thirteen percent approved (NHK).
