Makoto Hamaguchi, Member of the House of Councillors, Chairman of the Committee on Economy, Trade and Industry

2026.04.30

The reform of highway tolls, "a flat-rate unlimited ride fare of 500 yen per coin," will bring more brightness and energy to rural areas.

■ Profile
Born in Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture in 1965. Second son. Blood type B. Taurus.
Graduated from Mie Prefectural Matsusaka High School in 1984.
Graduated from the Department of Social Engineering, Third Cluster of Colleges, University of Tsukuba in 1988.
Joined Toyota Motor Corporation in 1988.
1996: Executive Committee Member (Full-time) of the Toyota Motor Corporation Workers' Union
2008: Deputy Secretary-General of the Japan Federation of Automobile Workers' Unions
First elected to the House of Councillors (proportional representation) in 2016.
Re-elected to the House of Councillors for a second term in 2022.
Currently, he is the Chairman of the House of Councillors' Committee on Economy, Trade and Industry, and the Policy Research Council Chairman of the Democratic Party for the People.

Makoto Hamaguchi, a member of the House of Councillors and Chairman of the Committee on Economy, Trade and Industry, transitioned from being an employee of Toyota Motor Corporation and a union official to becoming a member of the House of Councillors. He advocates for policies such as lowering highway tolls and raising workers' wages. In this interview, we spoke with Mr. Hamaguchi about how he became a politician, what he is focusing on as a politician, and his future aspirations.

■Things I worked hard on during my student days

During my university years, I belonged to the athletic softball club and dedicated myself to it to a certain extent, which gave me the opportunity to participate in the intercollegiate championships. Currently, the TX (Tsukuba Express) is in operation, making it very convenient to travel to Tsukuba where the university is located. However, back then, the Joban Line or express buses were the main modes of transportation, so I remember how time-consuming the journeys were, and how I could overhear conversations among Tsukuba University students about their respective faculties and departments on the train. During my job search, while those around me went into various industries such as finance and consulting, I decided to join Toyota Motor Corporation because cars were the primary mode of transportation at the time, and I had always been interested in the automotive industry. I felt a little anxious as those around me were quickly finding jobs, but since the field I was aiming for was different from my friends', I managed to accept that and continued my job search.

■ The path to becoming a politician

After joining Toyota Motor Corporation, I was assigned to the scheduling department, which manages the production process at the factory that manufactures transmissions, the main units that power cars, such as engines and motors. There, I had to go to the actual factory floor and memorize every single step of the process, so I used to write down each step in a notebook to remember. Looking back, being able to work on the actual factory floor from my first year at the company was a valuable experience that allowed me to properly observe the factory floor.
At the age of 31, a turning point came in my career. From that age, I began working as an officer in the Toyota Motor Corporation labor union. Later, I was also appointed to the Toyota Group and the Japan Federation of Automobile Workers' Unions, accumulating a total of 14 years of experience as a full-time union official. In the labor union, I gathered feedback from the field regarding wage negotiations for workers, the shortage of mechanics at dealerships, and policies related to automobile-related taxes, and made policy recommendations to Diet members from the automobile industry. In the labor union, discussions were held from a wide range of perspectives to realize a labor and wage system that was acceptable to both the company and the union.
Then, at the age of 45, I returned to work as a manager. From 2013 for about two years, I was stationed in Indonesia, where I was involved in improving local logistics. While working in Indonesia, I was asked to return to Japan and run for a seat in parliament. It was a sudden development, and I was surprised, but having experience as a union official, I understood the importance of being involved in politics, and I accepted the fact that someone had to take on that role, so I made up my mind and decided to take on the challenge.

■ Activities as a policymaker

As I was elected as a member of the House of Councillors through nationwide proportional representation, I travel all over the country for my activities. Therefore, I travel approximately 100,000 km in a year, which is equivalent to circling the Earth two and a half times. I usually visit union members and supporters, give lectures, and then immediately move on to another location.
In terms of policy, we are currently working to strengthen support for next-generation technology development, aiming to achieve carbon neutrality and advance autonomous driving. We are also currently pursuing a policy of reforming expressway tolls. The current toll system is based on distance traveled, but we aim to implement a policy that allows unlimited travel for a flat rate of 500 yen, regardless of distance. This policy takes note of the excellent infrastructure of Japan's expressways and aims to encourage more people to use them, thereby revitalizing logistics and the flow of people. We believe this will increase the number of visitors and lead to the revitalization of regional areas. Specifically, we envision an exciting and thrilling win-win system that allows people to easily visit regional attractions and transport goods at a lower cost, without using tax money, where both the government and its citizens can benefit.

■ Despite being hindered by the numerical barrier

As I am currently in the opposition, even if I want to implement policies, there are many difficult policies because the opposition does not have a majority of seats in the House of Representatives. Taking the policy of lowering highway tolls as an example, I receive encouragement from Liberal Democratic Party members saying, "There are various circumstances that prevent us from promoting it from our position, but it is a good policy, so Mr. Hamaguchi, please make it happen," but I am acutely aware of the difficulty of implementing such policies. It took 50 years to abolish the provisional tax rate on gasoline as well. To implement policies, it is impossible to avoid the numerical barrier in the Diet. To overcome this problem, it is essential to increase the number of seats through elections. I would like to ask young people in particular to take action using their social media to get many people interested in politics. The power of young people is very encouraging, so I would like them to take the lead. Also, as I serve as the policy research chairman of the Democratic Party for the People, I intend to communicate policies that will resonate with many voters, such as the above policies and the removal of income restrictions to increase take-home pay.

■Message to students

You are all invaluable individuals who will lead Japan into the future. Therefore, we believe it is important for you to take even a little interest in politics. We, too, will do our best to raise your expectations for politics through the implementation of policies and other efforts, so we hope that you will continue to live each day with a challenging spirit. If you do, a bright future surely awaits you. Let's work hard together!

Interviewed by Student Newspaper Online on January 6, 2026 by Kyohei Nakazawa, a second-year student at Waseda University

Ayuri Nakatsu (2nd year, Dokkyo University) / Naokazu Shimada (4th year, Hosei University) / Kyohei Nakazawa (3rd year, Waseda University) / Ayami Matsuyama (2nd year, Aoyama Gakuin University) / Yurie Watanabe (3rd year, Josai International University) / Reina Inomoto (1st year, Kyoto University of the Arts)