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Activities
The Diet Year
Start of Activities
The Diet begins each year with a 150-day session that convenes in January. This is called an ordinary session of the Diet. That period can be extended if necessary. In many cases, an extraordinary session is convened in the autumn.
A Typical Diet Year
| Late January : | Ordinary Diet session convened |
| Opening ceremony | |
| Policy speeches | |
| Questions from members representing each faction | |
| Budget deliberations and voting | |
| Deliberations on bills presented to the Diet | |
| Late June : | Ordinary Diet session ends |
| Late September : | Extraordinary Diet session convened |
| Opening ceremony | |
| Prime minister's address | |
| Questions from members representing each faction | |
| Deliberation and voting on supplementary budget | |
| Deliberations on bills presented to the Diet | |
| Late November : | Extraordinary Diet session ends |
A Diet Session
At the beginning of each Diet session an opening ceremony is held in the presence of the emperor of Japan. Next, the prime minister gives an overall policy speech, followed by addresses on individual policy areas such as foreign affairs and finance by the respective ministers. Questions in response to those policy speeches are presented on the floor of the house by a representative from each political groups in the house.
Deliberations on the budget take place in the House of Representatives for approximately one month, then in the House of Councillors for approximately another month. After that, any proposed legislation, treaties, and the like are debated and discussed.