translate her strong public polling into a big majority in the lower house. It was an "extremely weighty decision" that would "determine Japan's course together with the people", Takaichi told a news conference in Tokyo. The country's first female leader and her cabinet have enjoyed high public support since taking office last October. But her party lags behind in polls and the move is risky. It's Japan's second general election in as many years and will test appetite for her plans to boost public spending when cost-of-living is top of voters' minds.

Having been elected as prime minister by lawmakers on 21 October, Takaichi is now seeking a public mandate in the House of Representatives, the more powerful house in Japan. Since the day she took office, Takaichi said, she has been "constantly concerned that the Takaichi cabinet has not yet been tested in an election where the public chooses the government". "Is Sanae Takaichi fit to be prime minister? I wanted to ask the sovereign people to decide," she told the news conference. Campaigning for the vote to elect the 465 lower house MPs, who serve four-year terms, starts on 27 January. Her Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has governed Japan almost continuously since 1955. It currently has 199 seats - including three held by its independent partners - in the House of Representatives, the most of any party. The LDP's coalition with the Japan Innovation party gives it a fragile majority, with just enough seats to govern. A protege of former conservative PM Shinzo Abe and self-professed admirer of Margaret Thatcher, Takaichi is known as Japan's "Iron Lady". She came into office promising an economic upturn after years of stagnation. (BBC)