Welcome to Hard Talk on the BBC World Service with me, Stephen Sackett.

My guest today is something of a rarity in Japanese politics.

A senior minister who has extensive experience of studying and living overseas

is fluent in English and embraces both social media and humour

in his efforts to reach a public seemingly disenchanted

with politics as usual. Not that Tarokono is an outsider. He's anything but. He's been an MP for

the ruling Liberal Democratic Party for almost two decades. His father was a former party president

and deputy prime minister.

Tarokono himself has previously served as foreign and defense minister, and is currently

minister for Japan's digital transformation and consumer affairs. That Japan needs

transformation is not in doubt. The post-war economic miracle that made the country

a global economic superpower has been superseded by decades of low growth, spiraling debt,

and growing alarm about an aging, declining population. Moreover, Japan sees new levels of danger in its neighborhood from an

increasingly powerful and assertive China and a hostile, unpredictable North Korea. Japan needs

a reboot to thrive in the 21st century. Will it get one? Well, Tarokono joins me now on the line from Tokyo. Welcome to

Hard Talk. Hello. How are you? I'm very well, Minister Conno, and thank you for joining us.

What has gone wrong? Simple question. What has gone wrong in Japan? You're a global powerhouse economy, which seems to have been

stalled for decades. Why do you think that is? Well, there was a bubble economy back in 1980s,

and the Japanese economy went through some adjustment. And now we are back on track.

The economy is getting warmer and warmer.

You think Japan's back on track when you look at your massive debt problem. you look at your very weak currency on global markets

right now, you look at a cost of living crisis which is clearly affecting Japanese people

...