Full text: Policy principles of Israel’s 35th government

The following is the full document of the “Policy principles of the 35th government of Israel,” released by the Likud and Blue and White parties on Wednesday, May 13, 2020:

The State of Israel, like the rest of the world, has been hit by a medical and economic crisis of historical proportions as a result of the spread of the coronavirus, and has thus established an emergency unity government of national conciliation that will operate along the following lines:

A. The Israeli government will form an emergency cabinet to deal with all issues related to the coronavirus crisis. This cabinet will take an integrative approach, overseeing measures related both to the economic-social and medical aspects of the crisis.

B. In the first stage, the new government will focus on measures to defeat the epidemic, including procuring necessary equipment, coordinating between the different bodies, and bolstering the public health system during the state of emergency and generally.

C. The government will lead a plan to extract Israel from the profound economic crisis and formulate and approve a state budget designed to meet the challenges posed by the epidemic. The plan will offer solutions related to employment as well as support for the business sector, the self-employed and the third sector.

D. The government will roll out a socio-economic safety net for all citizens and design targeted programs to address the needs of specific populations particularly struggling financially and socially.

E. The government will work to achieve these goals while boosting the economy and accelerating growth through increasing productivity, promoting investments, removing regulatory and bureaucratic barriers, advancing reforms to heighten competition and preserve fiscal frameworks.

Furthermore, based on the conviction that the Jewish people has the inviolable right to a sovereign state in the Land of Israel, the national and historic homeland of the Jewish people, the government will also address all issues relating to the peace, security and prosperity of Israel, in the following areas, amongst others:

1. The government will strengthen national security, strive for peace, ensure the welfare and security of the entirety of Israel’s citizens, act decisively to remove any threat to the State of Israel and its residents, and strive to constantly improve the sense of personal safety of every citizen.

2. The government will aim to narrow social disparities in Israel, and will work to create equal opportunity for every Israeli citizen, regardless of ethnicity, gender or origin.

3. The government will work to boost the Israeli economy, increase productivity, encourage investment in the Israeli economy, and increase competition to fuel growth.

4. The government will work in principle and in practice to bridge between the different parts of the nation and the country and will operate from an overarching attitude of national reconciliation. To that end, a reconciliation cabinet will be formed to coordinate and streamline all relevant activity.

5. The government will work to preserve the Jewish and democratic character of the state.

6. The government will ensure that, given the attachment to Jewish tradition, the country’s Jewish character will be preserved, while respecting the religions and traditions of the different peoples, in alignment with the principles enshrined in Israel’s Declaration of independence.

7. The government will place a particular emphasis on Jewish immigration and absorption and will work decisively to increase Jewish immigration from across the world and ensure the successful integration of immigrants.

8. The government will act to strengthen Israel’s social and geographic periphery, the Negev, the Galil, and Jewish settlement across Israel.

9. The government will act to promote conduct, discourse and activity in a statesmanlike, lawabiding manner that is respectful and unifies the different components of Israeli society in its entirety, even during times of disagreement.