invite the Emperor to the Chamber of the House of Councillors, a successor of the House of Peers, where the Emperor makes his opening statement from his throne. In the Chamber of the House of Councillors, the microphones are only for the chairman and the podium, while in the Chamber of the House of Representatives, they are also given to the secretary general who report voting results and the Diet member in charge of making procedural motions. There are currently 242 members of the House of Councillors but 460 seats in the Chamber as members of the House of Representatives also attend the opening ceremony held at the Chamber. The number of seats, however, is still not enough to accommodate the entire 722 members of the Diet, so at the opening ceremony Diet members are sometimes seen standing in the aisles or space in the back of the floor. Both Chambers prohibit Diet members from entering without a jacket and a member badge based on precedent (identification cards are accepted since 2005). No exceptions are allowed to this rule; then-Prime Minister Takeo Fukuda once attempted to enter the Chamber while forgetting to wear his badge and was halted by the guards, the situation of which was resolved when Fukuda hastily borrowed a member badge from a nearby Diet member, Yoshiro Mori. Parenthetically, either House restricts its members from wearing hats, coats, scarfs, or carrying umbrellas or walking sticks without permission from the chairman. Smoking is also prohibited. Diet members are also forbidden to read newspapers and literature other than reference materials. Public gallery Above the rear of the Chamber is a public gallery which is physically a part of the Chamber but is considered a different jurisdiction under the Diet internal regulations. According to those rules, visitors to the public gallery are forbidden from entering the Chamber. The public gallery in the House of Representatives is divided into seats for VIPs, diplomats, members of the House of Councillors, government officials, the general public and journalists. The public gallery in the House of Councillors accommodates the imperial family, VIPs, foreign diplomats, members of the House of Representatives, government officials, the general public and journalists. The general public seats are partly assigned to guests invited by a Diet member with the rest open to visitors on a first-come-first-served basis. Visitors to the public gallery must have admission tickets. Newspaper and news service