Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe moved quickly yesterday to replace a cabinet minister who quit over a political funding scandal, the second departure of a hand-picked official in a week

The latest scandal looked likely to dog the prime minister into the new year, reviving criticism of his selection of what many saw as a «crony cabinet» of personal allies on taking office in September.

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) picked Abe to succeed the charismatic Junichiro Koizumi, seeing him as the best bet to lead them to victory in upper house elections next July.

Abe has now named Yoshimi Watanabe, an LDP lawmaker now serving as a senior vice minister, to take over as minister for administrative reform after incumbent Genichiro Sata resigned.

“The virtues of the ‘Abe team’ are not being mobilized skilfully, but if it gets back on track, the strategic team can function well”, Watanabe told reporters.

Watanabe, 54-year-old son of a former foreign minister, is known for his expertise in financial matters.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki later confirmed Watanabe’s appointment as minister, whose job it will be to make the government slimmer and more efficient.