Yūko Obuchi

Yuko Obuchi (小渕 優子, Obuchi Yūko; born 11 December 1973) is a Japanese politician. She is a member of the House of Representatives for the Liberal Democratic Party. She briefly served as Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry during the Abe government, but was forced to resign. She is the second daughter of Keizo Obuchi, who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1998 to 2000.

Early life Obuchi (far right) meeting with United States Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy (far left) in 2014. Obuchi was born in Tokyo in 1973. She graduated from Seijo University and joined the broadcaster TBS in 1996.

Political career Obuchi began working as an aide to her father in 1999. She was elected to the House of Representatives for the first time in the 2000 general election, winning her late father's Diet seat after his death in office.

Abe government In December 2012, she was appointed Vice Minister of Finance by the new Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, and on 3 September 2014, she was made Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry in Abe's cabinet. As such, she became the minister responsible for the nuclear industry in Japan, with partial responsibility for the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster clean-up. She was viewed at the time as a potential candidate for prime minister. Her departure was seen as a blow to the Abe government. An investigation committee found in October 2015 that Obuchi had no legal responsibility for the scandal, as the false entries had been made by two of her aides without her knowledge.