From Bill adding Haredi rep to national construction committee advances in Knesset
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. 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"
The Knesset votes 50-37 to advance in a preliminary reading a bill proposed by United Torah Judaism MK Yaakov Asher that aims to amend the Law for the Promotion of Construction in Preferred Areas in order to give preference to members of the ultra-Orthodox community.
The legislation would add a Haredi representative to the National Committee for Planning and Construction of Preferred Areas, which is charged with streamlining the planning and approvals process for large-scale residential construction plans. The bill states that this will “help improve planning for the Haredi population” due to its special needs, such as the inclusion of sukkah balconies in apartments and public spaces for synagogues and additional schools.
Addressing the committee, Asher argues that appointing a Haredi representative who is “familiar with the planning nature of this population” is necessary.
According to the Israel Democracy Institute, “although 33% of ultra-Orthodox families live below the poverty line, 75% own an apartment — a rate higher than that of the non-Haredi public.”
Pushing back on the bill, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid tells lawmakers that “many people in the State of Israel feel they’ve been given up on” by the state. He alludes to legislation that would largely perpetuate the longstanding exemption of Haredi men from IDF conscription.
“Today the army submitted a document saying it lacks 1,300 young officers… Hundreds of officers announced they are leaving because they too feel they’ve been given up on. Today Central Bureau of Statistics data was published showing that for the first time in the country’s history there is… negative migration of academics because they say, ‘Okay, they’ve given up on us, they don’t want us here.’ There is a government here saying, ‘Take a hike, leave, you’re not wanted,’ so they leave,” he says.
“So I came up here just to make sure there’s been no misunderstanding of any kind,” he continues. “You’ve given up on all of us. You don’t want shared life with us?… You don’t want to reach any agreements? You want to do whatever you want and have us disappear from your lives? It’s tragic.”
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