Koizumi cabinet minister under fire

TOKYO, Japan (CNN) -- Japanese opposition parties have filed a no-confidence motion against the country's Agriculture Minister Tsutomu Takebe for what they said was his mishandling of an outbreak of mad cow disease last year.

The motion was submitted by opposition parties in the Diet, Japan's lower house of Parliament on Monday.

An opposition-sponsored no-confidence motion has never passed the LDP-dominated Japanese Parliament and would be non-binding if it did pass.

Three cases of mad cow disease in cattle were reported in Japan last year -- the only country in Asia known to have the disease.

During the outbreak, the Agricultural minister made comments questioning the need to track the mad cow outbreak.

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The no confidence motion filed Monday said the citizens' trust in the country's agricultural policy could not be recovered under the current circumstances.

The opposition parties called his stance irresponsible and blamed him for the incompetence and negligence they said had allowed mad with cow disease into Japan..

'Unshakeable determination'

The opposition move comes at a time when Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has seen his public opinion ratings slump following widespread criticism of his dismissal of a popular foreign minister as well as his administration's handling of the mad cow disease outbreak.

Undeterred he is promising to continue with reforms despite the current tough economic times.

"The economic environment is becoming even more severe and many people are facing difficulties," he said in his first major policy speech of the years.

Nonetheless, he said, his cabinet's policy of "no growth without reform" was receiving the support of the majority of the people.

"Firmly listening to their voices, I will forge ahead with reform, with unshakeable determination."

Although soaring unemployment and the stagnating economy have battered Koizumi's standing, it was the sacking of his popular but controversial Foreign Minister, Makiko Tanaka, last week that sent his approval rating plummeting 20 points down to just 50 percent.

Analysts said the firing showed he was susceptible to pressure from conservatives inside his own party, and concern that he lacked the strength to implement reform promises sent markets tumbling along with his poll numbers.

That raft of bad news has provided Japan's opposition parties with the change they've been waiting for, taking advantage of Koizumi's new vulnerability to file a no-confidence motion against his minister of agriculture.

-- CNN Tokyo Bureau Chief Rebecca MacKinnon contributed to this report