MKs vote against cap on number of government ministers

11 May 2015, 9:23 pm

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The Knesset votes 61-59 against an amendment to Basic Law: Government, which was backed by the prime minister in the previous Knesset but is now a hurdle to his wish to establish a government.

The reform would cap the number of ministers at 18 and was the brainchild of Yesh Atid.

There are no surprises during this evening’s vote, which takes place after a five-hour-long filibuster by the opposition. The Knesset must still hold a second and third reading of the amendment before it can be legislated.

As an opposition MK calls to Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein about the “61-60” majority that voted on rejecting the amendment, a weary-looking Edelstein corrects him to say, “You realize it’s 61-59, otherwise we’d have an extra MK.”