Minister quits over drinking

Japan's finance minister resigned yesterday after being forced to deny he was drunk at a G7 news conference, but the move may be too late to save unpopular Prime Minister Taro Aso or the long-ruling party from voters' wrath.

Shoichi Nakagawa told reporters the prime minister had accepted his resignation, just a day after Aso had asked his close ally to stay in his post despite uproar over his behavior at a G7 gathering in Rome.

Aso picked Economics Minister Kaoru Yosano, 70, to add the job of finance minister to his current role, a choice that spelled little change in policy as the government struggles to lift Japan out of a deepening recession.