Japan vax minister Kono favourite to succeed Suga

Japan’s vaccination minister Taro Kono is the favourite to replace Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga as the leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, according to a poll conducted by Nikkei and TV Tokyo. In total, 27 per cent of survey respondents opted for Kono as “the right person” to become the party’s president, from a choice of 10 LDP politicians. Former Defence Minister Shigeru Ishiba ranked second with 17 per cent, and ex-foreign Minister Fumio Kishida came third with 14 per cent, according to the poll.