From the Liveblog of
Sunday, August 11, 2024
Despite opposition, government approves plan for PM to directly nominate civil service commissioner
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"
The government approves allowing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to directly nominate the next civil service commissioner rather than using a search committee.
The unanimous vote comes after Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara voiced strong objections to the government’s plan, stating that “there is an impediment to advancing the prime minister’s proposal that the civil service commissioner be appointed by him personally and politically, without a professional examination of professional qualifications and suitability.”
“An open competitive procedure must be established for the selection of the civil service commissioner to allow qualified candidates to compete for the position,” she stated.
Netanyahu will now be authorized to nominate a candidate who will then be examined by the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee to the Civil Service.
Baharav-Miara has recently insisted that the role of civil service commissioner, which involves supervising civil servants, must be approved by a search committee headed by a retired Supreme Court justice, citing a 2018 government decision that was made to ensure the position’s independence. However, the process is not enshrined in legislation and was recently rejected by the government.
During the government meeting, Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs castigates Baharav-Miara over her objections to the change in appointment procedures as well as recent steps she has taken relating to the conscription of the ultra-Orthodox to the military.
