From the Liveblog of
Thursday, October 31, 2024
Gantz: Coalition’s proposed budget is designed for political purposes, unnecessary ministries must close
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"
National Unity chairman Benny Gantz accuses the government of seeking to pass a political budget during wartime, insisting that it close unnecessary ministries and stop engaging in “political business as usual.”
“After a year of war, the time has come to move from a sectoral budget whose purpose is to protect the government, to a responsible budget that will protect the country, both in terms of security and economically,” Gantz, a former member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet, declares in a video message.
He says the country’s first priority should be winning the war and allocating money, above all, to those serving and the residents of the north and south.
After that, reforms are needed to “restore confidence in the Israeli economy,” including in the fields of infrastructure, transportation, universal enlistment and “state education for all.”
This would also include plans to boost the domestic defense industry and “preserve human capital in industry and science.”
In addition, Gantz calls for politicians to set a “personal example” by “closing unnecessary government ministries, and stopping the flow of coalition funds.”
“It is impossible to mobilize the citizens of Israel when in the government it is political business as usual,” he says.
The Times of Israel Community.