FILE PHOTO: Yoshihide Suga, Japan’s prime minister, speaks during a joint news conference with Scott Morrison, Australia’s prime minister at Suga’s official residence in Tokyo, Japan, Nov. 17, 2020. Kiyoshi Ota/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
TOKYO —Japan said it will suspend a domestic travel campaign in areas where coronavirus infections are especially high as cases in the capital Tokyo hit a record high on Saturday.
The partial suspension of the domestic travel campaign marks a change in direction for the government, which was holding back on curtailing a domestic travel subsidy program.
“We will suspend new reservations under the Go To Travel program for trips destined for regions seeing a rise in coronavirus infections,” Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said.
Suga has been attempting a balancing act of revitalizing Japan’s hard-hit economy while keeping the spread of the coronavirus under control. However, an expert panel recommended on Friday that the government curtail the program if there is a further rise in cases.
New coronavirus cases have continued to climb nationally. In Tokyo, the daily infection rate reached a record 539 cases on Saturday.