Buoyed by polls showing he commands the highest support of any new Japanese prime minister, Mr Junichiro Koizumi promised a labour union rally today that he would be a force for change.
Speaking to 100,000 members of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation (Rengo) at a Tokyo park, Mr Koizumi pledged to push ahead with reforms aimed at reviving the enfeebled economy -which would almost certainly cost many labourers their jobs.
"My taking office as prime minister has the same meaning as the change that you have been calling for," he said.
Mr Koizumi, who this week scored a stunning upset victory in the election to lead the dominant Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), and hence the nation, has said he would not shy away from painful reforms needed to revive the ailing economy.
Underscoring the hopes for change that swept him into office, a Kyodo news agency opinion poll said 86.3 per cent of voters approved of Mr Koizumi's government, in stark contrast to the record low support for his predecessor, Mr Yoshiro Mori.
The previous record high approval rating was 75.7 percent for Mr Morihiro Hosokawa, who took power in 1993 on a reform platform.