The ruling party and the opposition have reached an agreement to move forward with the plans of raising the sales tax, according to information obtained by the Japanese press.

The politicians have eventually agreed to vote on Tuesday on the bill that would double the sales tax. The measure is seen as an essential step in the efforts of tackling the country’s huge public debt.

The current parliamentary session, which was scheduled to end on Thursday, was extended to September 8, to provide more time to pass important legislation, including the tax bill.

Even if the ruling party seems to have convinced the opposition of the necessity of raising the sales tax, prime minister Yoshihiko Noda still has adversaries in his own party. A very influential figure in the Democratic Party of Japan, Ichiro Ozawa repeated on Thursday that he did not agree to the sales tax measure. According to media, he is supported by up to 60 ruling party members of parliament who could vote next week against the bill.