Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has vowed to push ahead with economic reform plans, even as new opinion polls indicate his public support has plummeted.

Mr. Koizumi was forced to go on the defensive in his first major policy speech of the new year. He told the legislature Monday that despite falling support for his government, his determination to push through reforms will not weaken.

But at least one analyst thinks the Koizumi administration's reforms are over, one week after the prime minister fired his controversial but highly popular foreign minister. The analyst with U-B-S Warburg (Shigenori Okazaki) says former foreign minister Makiko Tanaka was one reason Mr. Koizumi enjoyed high public support.

Opinion polls released by several Japanese newspapers Monday show that Mr. Koizumi's popular support has plummeted to 47 percent from nearly 78 percent in September. The newspapers say the sharp fall reflects the public's dissatisfaction with Mr. Koizumi's decision to fire Ms. Tanaka, Japan's first woman foreign minister.

Ms. Tanaka was replaced by another woman, former environment minister Yoriko Kawaguchi.

In parliament Monday, Japan's opposition parties submitted a no-confidence motion against the government. The motion was not related to Mr. Koizumi's firing of his foreign minister. Instead, the motion accuses the farm minister, Tsutomu Takebe, of mishandling the country's mad cow scare.

Opposition lawmakers say Mr. Takebe did not display a sense of urgency in tracking down the cause of the small outbreak of mad cow disease. Japan is the only country in Asia where the disease has been found.

The motion is due for a vote Tuesday. It is largely symbolic, because the ruling coalition has enough votes in parliament to defeat it.

(ap,reuters,voa cr,afp,prev)

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