Tourism Minister Haim Katz tapped to run all 3 of Otzma Yehudit’s former ministries
‘Even the most diligent minister in the world cannot invest effort in four ministries at the same time,’ protests Opposition Leader Yair Lapid
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"

In a telephone vote on Thursday afternoon, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet approved the temporary appointment of Tourism Minister Haim Katz to the three ministerial positions left vacant when the far-right Otzma Yehudit party quit the government earlier this week.
Katz will now take over all three portfolios, in addition to the one he already holds. He will serve as an interim minister for three months, rather than receiving a permanent appointment.
A longtime Likud lawmaker who has previously served as welfare minister, Katz received a six-month suspended sentence and a NIS 75,000 (approximately $23,400) fine in 2022 after reaching a plea bargain in a corruption case involving allegations of advancing a bill on corporate bond repayment sought by a financial consultant who was a close friend and financial adviser.
It is widely believed that the reason for making Katz’s appointments temporary is Netanyahu’s desire to signal to Otzma Yehudit chairman, former national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir, that the portfolios are waiting for him, should he wish to return to the coalition.
Katz later issued a statement saying that he had “answered the call from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with the knowledge that I will be able to fulfill the mission.”
On Sunday morning, Ben Gvir announced that his party would pull out of the coalition in protest of the ceasefire deal reached with Hamas. He, Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu, and Negev, Galilee and National Resilience Minister Yitzhak Wasserlauf all submitted their resignations, which went into effect Tuesday morning.
Ben Gvir had previously told reporters that he would be willing to rejoin the coalition should the war eventually resume.

Netanyahu did not immediately appoint successors to the three former ministers. As such, he was automatically appointed to take their places on an acting basis, violating a prohibition on criminal defendants serving as ministers.
While Katz eventually got the nod, press reports largely focused on Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter as the top contender to replace Ben Gvir as minister in charge of police.
According to Hebrew media reports, final decisions on filling the ministerial positions were put off in the wake of demands by the ultra-Orthodox Shas party and other coalition partners.
Interior Minister Moshe Arbel (Shas) voted against Katz’s appointment.
A coalition source with knowledge of the matter told The Times of Israel that Shas was opposed to Katz’s appointment because it wanted control of the Negev, Galilee and National Resilience Ministry, a post held by party chairman Aryeh Deri in 2015-2021.
Asked if Katz could effectively run four ministries simultaneously, the source replied that there was “no law against government incompetence.”

Responding to Katz’s appointment, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid insisted that “even the most diligent minister in the world cannot invest effort in four ministries at the same time.”
“Either they’re unnecessary, or it’s blatant disrespect for these ministries,” he posted on X.
Ahead of Thursday’s vote, Lapid’s Yesh Atid party accused Netanyahu of endangering public security for political ends.
“The National Security portfolio is a portfolio that deals with human lives… Over the past two years, terrorist attacks have been rampant, the number of people murdered has soared, domestic violence is on the rise, and traffic accidents are at a new high,” the party tweeted on Wednesday evening.
It is unlikely that Katz, as a temporary appointee wearing multiple hats, will be able to significantly alter existing policies at the National Security Ministry. Ben Gvir has reportedly left written instructions for security agency heads detailing his policies regarding various issues.

A legal opinion appended to the government decision acknowledged the difficulty of a minister juggling multiple portfolios but said that, given the short timespan of his tenure and the fact that two of Katz’s new ministries were relatively minor, there was no legal impediment to his appointment.
In addition to appointing Katz, the cabinet also voted to upgrade Science Minister Gila Gamliel to a full member of the security cabinet.
“Thank you to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for expressing his confidence in me with his decision to appoint me as a member of the political-security cabinet after two years as an observer,” Gamliel tweeted. “I will continue to act resolutely alongside the prime minister for the security of the country and its residents.”
Spokespeople for the Likud party and Arbel did not respond to requests for comment.