Japan PM Ishiba's cabinet approval hits record low, Asahi reports

TOKYO (Reuters) - Public support for Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's government dropped to a record low after he handed out gift vouchers to some ruling party lawmakers, a poll conducted by the Asahi newspaper showed on Monday.

The approval rating slid 14 percentage points to 26% from the previous survey done in February, the worst since Ishiba took the office last October, according to the March 15-16 poll by the Asahi.

Other polls done by the Yomiuri newspaper and the Mainichi newspaper over the weekend also showed public approval for the Ishiba's cabinet fell to a record low.

Ishiba found himself in a hot water as he handed out gift vouchers worth 100,000 yen ($673) each to 15 first-term lower house lawmakers of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) earlier this month, drawing criticism as it could violate a political law.

Speaking in parliament, Ishiba said he used "pocket money" to hand out gift certificates to the lawmakers before having dinner with them on March 3 as a "show of appreciation" for their hard work getting elected.

The premier said the gift handout didn't violate a political fund law but apologised for his action caused "distrust and anger among many people."

All of the 15 lawmakers returned the gift vouchers to the Ishiba's office, according to Japanese media.

The slide in opinion polls could be a blow to Ishiba's leadership ahead of an upper house election slated for July, and comes at a time when Japan's economy faces headwinds from the escalating trade war waged by U.S. President Donald Trump.

($1 = 148.5600 yen)

(Reporting by Kaori Kaneko; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)