Story perspectives

Takaichi Says Grooming Adds 3-4 Hours Daily

By Drooid · Oct 16, 2026, 11:22 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Sanae Takaichi on Chores

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said household chores and grooming add three to four hours to her workday.
Sanae Takaichi is Japan's first female prime minister.
Sanae Takaichi told parliament she prepares breakfast, cleans up and applies makeup before duties.
Sanae Takaichi's staff initially struggled to fit the time needed for television appearances.
Conservative writer Kotoe Hashimoto criticized the remarks, questioning whether Sanae Takaichi should appear barefaced.

Summary

Kazuo Yana Resigns

Farm Minister Kazuo Yana resigned on Wednesday after scandals involving budget cuts and free transportation for supporters.
NXJI Research suggested adding cooks and housekeeping staff to the prime minister’s residence to aid sleep.
Fumitake Fujita reported the prime minister attended 72 parliamentary days in 2022, exceeding the UK’s 50 and Germany’s 13.
Only 68 of the 465 lower-house seats were held by women after the February election, indicating gender imbalance.

History

Historical Context

When Margaret Thatcher assumed office as the United Kingdom’s first female prime minister in May 1979, she shattered a centuries-old male-dominated political norm. Thatcher’s eleven-year tenure saw a thirty-percent increase in women’s parliamentary representation in the British Parliament, rising from nineteen to twenty-seven of six-hundred-fifty seats. Now Japan’s inaugural female premier Sanae Takaichi adds three to four hours of household duties daily, while only sixty-eight of 465 lower-house seats are held by women, mirroring Thatcher’s early gender-bias challenges. Consequently, policymakers worldwide are urged to enact comprehensive childcare reforms and equitable workload standards to prevent history’s repeat of systemic exclusion.

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Sanae Takaichi on Chores

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said household chores and grooming add three to four hours to her workday.
Sanae Takaichi is Japan's first female prime minister.
Sanae Takaichi told parliament she prepares breakfast, cleans up and applies makeup before duties.
Sanae Takaichi's staff initially struggled to fit the time needed for television appearances.
Conservative writer Kotoe Hashimoto criticized the remarks, questioning whether Sanae Takaichi should appear barefaced.

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