Ministerial panel backs bills intended to give government ‘sole discretion’ over senior appointments

The Ministerial Committee for Legislation votes to back a pair of bills giving government ministers “sole discretion” over the selection of candidates for senior appointments, including the attorney general and heads of the Shin Bet and Mossad security agencies.

“The Government holds full and exclusive authority to appoint or refrain from appointing a person to a senior position in the civil service,” one of the two bills states, adding that the terms of such officials “shall terminate within one hundred days” of the formation of a new government unless extended — and that the government would have the power to remove senior officials “at any time at its sole discretion.”

Among the positions affected by the bills are the IDF chief of staff, the police inspector general, Shin Bet and Mossad chiefs, Prison Service head, civil service commissioner, and the attorney general, as well as director generals of government ministries and other senior officials.

The approval of the bills comes despite strong opposition from the office of the attorney general, which has stated that they would unacceptably politicize government.

“The time has come for an elected government to be able to work with public officials who are committed to its policy” and this legislation is an “important step” on the way to “restoring governance,” says Justice Minister Yariv Levin.

Should the bills pass into law, a government-appointed eligibility committee will be responsible for vetting nominees for senior appointments. The appointments would then be approved by a Knesset panel made up of two coalition and two opposition lawmakers, and a chairman selected by the entire parliament, effectively giving the governing coalition total control of the process.

The new procedures would also replace the current system for choosing the attorney general and civil service commissioner, making it easier to hire and fire them.

The sponsor of the bills, Likud MK Shalom Danino, says in a joint statement with Levin that the intent “is to establish an orderly process for appointing senior officials” and that, as members of the executive branch, “the power of dismissal is an inherent part of the government’s constitutional authority to manage the executive branch and the government apparatus.”

“The public responsibility imposed on the government requires that it be allowed effective control over the executive echelon — otherwise the connection between responsibility and authority will be broken,” he says.