On September 25th, in a further blow to Mr Hashimoto, Ihei Ochi, the agriculture minister, resigned for reasons of ill health.

ECONOMIST: Another apology from Hashimoto

Since Japan is struggling to free itself from a banking crisis caused partly by widespread connected lending (thanks to the system of corporate groups known as keiretsu, today's variant on the zaibatsu), Mr Ochi's preferences seem most peculiar.

ECONOMIST: Japanese banking

Michio Ochi, who heads the government commission charged with financial-sector reform, said it would slow down their write-offs of bad loans, and hamper their return to health (although the soft policies pursued by Mr Ochi himself are also often blamed for the banks' lingering malaise).

ECONOMIST: Capital taxes | The