Bunmei Ibuki (伊吹 文明, Ibuki Bunmei, born 9 January 1938) is a retired Japanese politician who served as the Speaker of the House of Representatives from 2012 to 2014.[1]

Bunmei Ibuki
伊吹 文明
Official portrait, 2006
Speaker of the House of Representatives
In office
26 December 2012 – 21 November 2014
MonarchAkihito
Preceded byTakahiro Yokomichi
Succeeded byNobutaka Machimura
67th Minister of Finance
In office
2 August 2008 – 24 September 2008
Prime MinisterYasuo Fukuda
Preceded byFukushiro Nukaga
Succeeded byShōichi Nakagawa
Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
In office
26 September 2006 – 26 September 2007
Prime MinisterShinzō Abe
Preceded byKenji Kosaka
Succeeded byKisaburo Tokai
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
19 December 1983 – 14 October 2021
Succeeded byYasushi Katsume [ja]
ConstituencyFormer Kyoto 1st (1983–1996)
Kyoto 1st (1996–2009, 2012–2021)
Kinki PR (2009–2012)
Personal details
Born (1938-01-09) 9 January 1938 (age 86)
Kyoto, Japan
Political partyLiberal Democratic
Alma materKyoto University

Early life and career

edit

He was born in Kyoto to a family of textile wholesalers who had operated the business since the Edo period. He graduated with a BA from Kyoto University's economics department in 1960. At Kyoto University he was a member of the tennis club. Upon graduation Ibuki became a bureaucrat at the Ministry of Finance. He was dispatched to the Japanese embassy in London in 1965, where he stayed for four years.[2]

Political career

edit
 
Ibuki in 1997

Ibuki entered politics in 1983 at former Finance Minister Michio Watanabe's behest. He is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and has served in a variety of government positions, including Minister of Labour (1997~98) and National Public Safety Commission chairman (2000~01).[citation needed]

 
Ibuki with Enrique peǹa Nieto in 2013

He was appointed Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology on 26 September 2006 as a part of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe's first cabinet. In this position, he promoted the controversial revision of the Fundamental Law of Education. He was subsequently appointed as Secretary-General of the LDP in September 2007;[3] less than a year later, he was replaced in that position by Taro Aso and was instead appointed as Minister of Finance.[4] He is known for his knowledge of finance and tax and welfare policies.[5] He held the post of Finance Minister for less than two months, however, and was replaced by Shōichi Nakagawa in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Taro Aso, appointed on 24 September 2008.[6]

On 26 December 2012, Bunmei Ibuki was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan. He presided over the day of his inauguration, the election of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe.[citation needed]

Personal life

edit
  • Ibuki is a fluent English speaker.[5] He is a member of the openly revisionist lobby Nippon Kaigi,[7] and affiliated to the fundamentalist shinto lobby Shinto Seiji Renmei Kokkai Giin Kondankai (神道政治連盟国会議員懇談会).
  • Ibuki is nicknamed "Ibu-King" due to his enduring political influence despite his now-advanced age.

Election history

edit
Election Age District Political party Number of votes election results
1983 Japanese general election 45 Kyoto 1st district LDP 58,059 winning
1986 Japanese general election 48 Kyoto 1st district LDP 51,514 winning
1990 Japanese general election 52 Kyoto 1st district LDP 56,450 winning
1993 Japanese general election 55 Kyoto 1st district LDP 48,893 winning
1996 Japanese general election 58 Kyoto 1st district LDP 63,094 winning
2000 Japanese general election 62 Kyoto 1st district LDP 86,490 winning
2003 Japanese general election 65 Kyoto 1st district LDP 83,644 winning
2005 Japanese general election 67 Kyoto 1st district LDP 112,848 winning
2009 Japanese general election 71 Kyoto 1st district LDP 81,913 elected by PR
2012 Japanese general election 74 Kyoto 1st district LDP 69,287[8] winning
2014 Japanese general election 76 Kyoto 1st district LDP 73,684[9] winning
2017 Japanese general election 79 Kyoto 1st district LDP 88,106[10] winning
[11][12][13]

Honours

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ Prime Minister of Japan official website - "Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology", retrieved 24 September 2007.
  2. ^ Ibuki official website; accessed 24 September 2007. (in Japanese)
  3. ^ "Fukuda appoints Ibuki as secretary-general, Tanigaki as policy chief"[permanent dead link], Mainichi Daily News, 24 September 2007.
  4. ^ "Fukuda overhauls Cabinet / LDP executive shakeup also elevates Aso to party No. 2" Archived 2008-10-16 at archive.today, The Yomiuri Shimbun, 2 August 2008.
  5. ^ a b Japan Times, "Fukuda's new lineup", 3 August 2008.
  6. ^ "Aso elected premier / Announces Cabinet lineup himself; poll likely on Nov. 2" Archived 2008-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, The Yomiuri Shimbun, 25 September 2008.
  7. ^ Nippon Kaigi website - 5 years: nipponkaigi.org/voice/5years - 10 years: nipponkaigi.org/about/10years
  8. ^ "2012年衆議院議員選挙:時事ドットコム". 時事ドットコム (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  9. ^ "2014衆院選 | 衆議院選挙 | 選挙アーカイブス | NHK選挙WEB". www.nhk.or.jp. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  10. ^ 日本放送協会. "2017衆院選 | 衆議院選挙 | 選挙データベース | NHK選挙WEB". www.nhk.or.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  11. ^ "伊吹文明(イブキブンメイ)|政治家情報|選挙ドットコム". 選挙ドットコム (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  12. ^ "伊吹文明 | 第48回衆議院議員選挙 2017 京都1区". 政治山. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  13. ^ "伊吹文明 | 選挙結果(衆議院) | 国会議員白書". kokkai.sugawarataku.net. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  14. ^ 皇居で春の大綬章親授式 伊吹元衆院議長ら18人 (Spring Grand Ribbon Ceremony at the Imperial Palace, Former Speaker of the House of Representatives Ibuki and 18 others) - website of Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun
  15. ^ Decoraties Staatsbezoeken Japan en Republiek Korea Archived 2014-11-04 at the Wayback Machine - website of the Dutch Royal House
edit
Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Labour
1997–1998
Succeeded by
Preceded by Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission
2000–2001
Succeeded by
New title Minister of State for Disaster Management
2001
Preceded by Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
2006–2007
Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Finance
2008
Succeeded by
Preceded by Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan
2012–2014
Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party
2007–2008
Succeeded by