When Taro Aso took over as Japanese prime minister in September, he vowed to focus his efforts on reviving the stalling economy.

But, since taking office, Mr Aso has been forced to watch the economy sink further – along with his popularity rating. On Monday, as the government announced that Japan was in recession, a poll by the liberal Asahi newspaper showed Mr Aso’s support rating had dropped 13 percentage points to 29.6 per cent.