Address from Consul General Takaoka: The Japan Society of Scotland AGM
2020/2/6
Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen,
My name is Nozomu Takaoka, Consul General of Japan in Edinburgh.
It is my great pleasure to attend the Annual General Meeting of the Japan Society of Scotland two years in a row, because this Society has been the major driving force to promote Japan-Scotland exchange and friendship for the past 33 years. I am looking forward to working with Professor Ian Gow, Helen, Callum and other member of the society to continue this great tradition.
I would like to use this precious opportunity to reflect with you upon what happened last year in 2019, a very fruitful year for Japan and Japan-Scotland relations.
First of all, the enthronement of His Majesty the Emperor marked the start of the era of Reiwa which means "Beautiful Harmony". I was glad, on the exact second day of the Reiwa Era, to have a joyous occasion to propose a toast at a lecture event hosted by the Japan Society of Scotland at Edinburgh University on May 2nd.
First of all, the enthronement of His Majesty the Emperor marked the start of the era of Reiwa which means "Beautiful Harmony". I was glad, on the exact second day of the Reiwa Era, to have a joyous occasion to propose a toast at a lecture event hosted by the Japan Society of Scotland at Edinburgh University on May 2nd.
Regarding other big international events last year, I guess I don’t have to revisit the detailed result of the Rugby World Cup, but I was so glad that so many Scottish fans including your friends and maybe yourselves made it out to Japan and enjoyed not just exciting matches but Japanese culture first-hand.
On economic front, International Trade Minister Liz Truss of the UK government, boasted of a healthy 7.6% increase of annual UK exports to Japan at the end of last year.
On economic front, International Trade Minister Liz Truss of the UK government, boasted of a healthy 7.6% increase of annual UK exports to Japan at the end of last year.
But do you know which two major items were cited by her as contributing to that increase? Scottish salmon and Scottish whisky.
As for salmon, exports to Japan increased by staggering 71.8% between October 2018 and October 2019. I am sure that the reduction of the tariff rate from 3.5% to 2.9% in the case of raw salmon and down to 0% in the case of frozen salmon was a big factor. This reduction was realized by the Japan EU Economic Partnership Agreement which entered into force in February last year.
Another contributing factor to the increased salmon exports was its high-quality. I heard that Scottish salmon is better suited for sushi because it contains less fat than those big and fat salmon from the N-word country.
Another contributing factor to the increased salmon exports was its high-quality. I heard that Scottish salmon is better suited for sushi because it contains less fat than those big and fat salmon from the N-word country.
Whisky exports to Japan, ten times larger than salmon exports in terms of value, also increased by hefty 20.9%.
Needless to say, the year 2020 will be a crucial year for the United Kingdom and Scotland, after yesterday, in the making of relations with their international partners including Japan. I am sure that our two governments will be working promptly to establish a new economic partnership based on the Japan EU Economic Partnership Agreement I just mentioned.
Last week, I participated in a useful meeting organized by CBI Scotland. The right honorable Nicola Sturgeon and Trade Minister Ivan Mckee declared that Scotland will aim to increase export in the next ten years and identified Next 11, a list of promising destination countries of Scottish products, in which Japan was at the top.
Given the mutually beneficial relations between Japan and Scotland, as I have stated, it is obvious that close coordination between us will bring further benefits to all the parties concerned. I would like to strongly suggest that the Japan Society of Scotland could play a very important role in that process.
In order to justify that prospect, I would like to quickly review the achievements that has been made in 2019.
Needless to say, the year 2020 will be a crucial year for the United Kingdom and Scotland, after yesterday, in the making of relations with their international partners including Japan. I am sure that our two governments will be working promptly to establish a new economic partnership based on the Japan EU Economic Partnership Agreement I just mentioned.
Last week, I participated in a useful meeting organized by CBI Scotland. The right honorable Nicola Sturgeon and Trade Minister Ivan Mckee declared that Scotland will aim to increase export in the next ten years and identified Next 11, a list of promising destination countries of Scottish products, in which Japan was at the top.
Given the mutually beneficial relations between Japan and Scotland, as I have stated, it is obvious that close coordination between us will bring further benefits to all the parties concerned. I would like to strongly suggest that the Japan Society of Scotland could play a very important role in that process.
In order to justify that prospect, I would like to quickly review the achievements that has been made in 2019.
In January, the V&A Dundee, a new landmark of the city, was officially and graciously opened by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who were personally briefed by the Japanese designer of the building, Mr Kengo Kuma, highlighting the beautiful combination of Japanese aesthetics with Scotland's scenic coastlines.
In February, the National Museum of Scotland opened its East Asian Wing which features precious historic items from Japan.
Also in February, the Cross-Party Group on Japan was established within the Scottish Parliament, thanks to the outstanding leadership of Convener Dean Lockhart MSP. This group has already met four times and is engaged in useful dialogue to promote our bilateral exchanges, in which this society is actively involved.
As a part of the Japan-UK Season of Culture 2019-2020 which commemorates Japan’s hosting of Rugby World Cup and Tokyo Olympic and Paralympics, I joined the planting ceremony of 22 Sakura trees at the Japanese Garden at Cowden Castle, Clackmannanshire, together with Luke Graham MP and students of the Edinburgh Royal Botanic Gardens in March, actually in pouring rain and strong winds.
Talking about strong winds, also in March, the Orkney Japan Association, chaired by Liam McArthur MSP was established. I was truly glad to observe that the friendship with Japan has spread as far north as Orkney with the help of this Society.
In June, again as part of the Japan-UK Season of Culture, Mitsubishi Electric Air Conditioning Systems Europe Ltd and West Lothian Chambers of Commerce held a successful educational event "Pump it Up". This provided 2000 high school students in the Council area with educational opportunities to think about the environment and technology.
Scotland's youth continued to lead the way in August with the Ayrshire Fiddle Orchestra travelling to Japan for their first summer tour there. Their performances were very well received including the first ever musical performance held at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park since its establishment 65 years ago.
2019 also saw the centenary anniversaries of two landmark events for the Japanese whisky industry. Exactly one hundred years ago, Masataka Taketsuru, who later came to be known as the founding father of Japanese whisky met his future wife Rita Cowen in Kirkintilloch and was also admitted to Glasgow University to study chemistry. If there were no Rita Cowen and Glasgow University, there would be no Japanese whisky as we know now.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August saw an increasing presence of Japanese performers one of which was awarded the Asian Arts Awards 2019 for Best Comedy. This year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra will take part in the Edinburgh Festival itself. I hope there will be even more participants to Fringe too from Japan.
Other exciting news in August was that Heart of Midlothian F.C welcomed Ryo Meshino on temporary loan from Manchester City. Meshino is sure to follow the footsteps Shunsuke Nakamura and make a mark on Scottish football.
In February, the National Museum of Scotland opened its East Asian Wing which features precious historic items from Japan.
Also in February, the Cross-Party Group on Japan was established within the Scottish Parliament, thanks to the outstanding leadership of Convener Dean Lockhart MSP. This group has already met four times and is engaged in useful dialogue to promote our bilateral exchanges, in which this society is actively involved.
As a part of the Japan-UK Season of Culture 2019-2020 which commemorates Japan’s hosting of Rugby World Cup and Tokyo Olympic and Paralympics, I joined the planting ceremony of 22 Sakura trees at the Japanese Garden at Cowden Castle, Clackmannanshire, together with Luke Graham MP and students of the Edinburgh Royal Botanic Gardens in March, actually in pouring rain and strong winds.
Talking about strong winds, also in March, the Orkney Japan Association, chaired by Liam McArthur MSP was established. I was truly glad to observe that the friendship with Japan has spread as far north as Orkney with the help of this Society.
In June, again as part of the Japan-UK Season of Culture, Mitsubishi Electric Air Conditioning Systems Europe Ltd and West Lothian Chambers of Commerce held a successful educational event "Pump it Up". This provided 2000 high school students in the Council area with educational opportunities to think about the environment and technology.
Scotland's youth continued to lead the way in August with the Ayrshire Fiddle Orchestra travelling to Japan for their first summer tour there. Their performances were very well received including the first ever musical performance held at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park since its establishment 65 years ago.
2019 also saw the centenary anniversaries of two landmark events for the Japanese whisky industry. Exactly one hundred years ago, Masataka Taketsuru, who later came to be known as the founding father of Japanese whisky met his future wife Rita Cowen in Kirkintilloch and was also admitted to Glasgow University to study chemistry. If there were no Rita Cowen and Glasgow University, there would be no Japanese whisky as we know now.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August saw an increasing presence of Japanese performers one of which was awarded the Asian Arts Awards 2019 for Best Comedy. This year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra will take part in the Edinburgh Festival itself. I hope there will be even more participants to Fringe too from Japan.
Other exciting news in August was that Heart of Midlothian F.C welcomed Ryo Meshino on temporary loan from Manchester City. Meshino is sure to follow the footsteps Shunsuke Nakamura and make a mark on Scottish football.
Last October, with the help of the Japan Society of Scotland, the Japanese School in Livingston and the University of Edinburgh, the first Autumn Festival event was held at the Teviot Debating hall. It attracted 800 visitors joining in cultural activities and enjoying Japanese food.
In the field of renewable energy, Japan-Scotland cooperation is growing. The Mayor of Yurihonjo City visited Aberdeen to examine examples of offshore windfarms in July and the Mayor of Kobe City again visited Aberdeen for the World Energy Cities Partnership Conference in September.
Important investments in this area included Mitsubishis involvement in the wind farm project in the Firth of Forth and East Moray, with its subsidiary MHI Vestas winning the contract to supply turbines for the project.
Meanwhile Kawasaki Heavy Industries announced its plan to build a factory in Aberdeen to build subsea vehicles for the oil and gas sector.
In October, Cabinet Secretary Fiona Hyslops visited Japan. In addition to cheering for the Scottish National Rugby Team and meeting with governmental and regional leaders, she attended the announcement by washing machine manufacturer Mayekawa to open an office in Glasgow. Another announcement was made by the Nippon Foundation-Scottish Enterprise to fund six joint Scotland-Japan subsea technology projects with the total amount of £21 million.
In November, Scottish audiences enjoyed rare authentic performances of Japanese Noh by Master Munenori Takeda and performers from his family at the Universities of Stirling, Glasgow and Edinburgh, again as a part of the Japan – UK Season of Culture and with the generous support of the Japan Society of Scotland.
In November, Scottish audiences enjoyed rare authentic performances of Japanese Noh by Master Munenori Takeda and performers from his family at the Universities of Stirling, Glasgow and Edinburgh, again as a part of the Japan – UK Season of Culture and with the generous support of the Japan Society of Scotland.
These are just some of the highlights of our Japan-Scotland relations in 2019. Building upon these developments, I see a bright future for our bilateral relations in 2020. Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress have accepted an invitation from Her Majesty the Queen to pay a State Visit to the United Kingdom in spring. They will stay at Windsor Castle. Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games will be held in July and August.
With your invaluable participation and support, I am looking forward to an even more promising future that lies ahead of us in 2020 and it is wonderful to be able to share this belief with you today
Thank you very much.