More on the Raiders of the Public Coffers

We have written much about the shameless raid of the public coffers, to the tune of billions, mostly to respond to the extortion by the Haredi and nationalist-Haredi parties and benefit the yeshivas, numerous schools that do not teach core-curricular studies in the boys' schools, and multiple outreach avenues to the secular public and order to "Judaize" them.

24/05/2023 10:17

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Hiddush Poll

Since the last newsletter, in which we updated you on the sharp criticism by the Treasury Chief Economist and the head of the Budget Department we have sampled the adult Jewish population via a public opinion survey, and the results are compelling: 66% of the representative sample from the adult Jewish population oppose the addition of billions more shekels of coalition fund allocations to religious institutions (mainly to yeshivas and schools that do not teach core curricular studies) and capitulation of the government to the demand of billions by the ultra-Orthodox parties. It is worthwhile noting that these figures do not represent just voters from the opposition: 55% of those that voted for the Likud and for the Religious Zionist parties in the last elections, and no less important, 83% of voters who are undecided as to their vote in the upcoming elections are also opposed to these allocations to religious institutions!

As we anticipated, this shameless scandal has been picked up by the protest movement and has been centrally featured in the protest events, demonstrations, and media.

In the meantime, it has also become clear that the appetite of the ultra-Orthodox parties is insatiable, and beyond the billions that were included in the budget according to their demand, they demanded hundreds of millions more, to which the government surrendered and approved. The funds are part of a dubious framework whose legality is still being examined, according to which the yeshiva students, for example, will receive 250 million shekels as one-time support next month [Approximately NIS 2000 per yeshiva student] which will be financed from the surplus of the allocations for the ultra-Orthodox that will not be used by the end of the fiscal year in December…

Another prominent example of the raid of the public coffers and the utter contempt for the law and due process became clear this week, when the Jerusalem and Tradition Minister, Meir Porush [UTJ] hastened to announce funding in the range of millions for the Shavuot events that already take place every year in the courts of the Hasidic leaders in Jerusalem, which Porush represents in the government. Fortunately, the gatekeepers will probably stop these scandalous supports, and unsurprisingly, neutralizing the gatekeepers (the Attorney General and economic advisors in the Treasury) is part of the so-called “legal over haul” plan.

The media reminded the public this week that the most vehement and eloquent opponent of the enormous disbursements that encourage evasion

"In order to put the Fat Man (the Public Sector) on a diet, I had to cut back Israel’s lavish welfare system, which encouraged people to live on the dole, and not to go out and work…the Bedouins in the Negev... …this was leading to demographic and economic collapse. In the ultra-Orthodox community – they didn’t work. They just had a lot of children, which the others, the private sector had to pay for."

from the labor market is none other than Benjamin Netanyahu himself. He understands the economy, and so he acted and declared without hesitation in 2003 when he was Minister of Finance in the government of the late Arik Sharon. Among other things he said, for example, a few months ago, in an interview with Jordan Peterson:

"In order to put the Fat Man (the Public Sector) on a diet, I had to cut back Israel’s lavish welfare system, which encouraged people to live on the dole, and not to go out and work…the Bedouins in the Negev... …this was leading to demographic and economic collapse. In the ultra-Orthodox community – they didn’t work. They just had a lot of children, which the others, the private sector had to pay for."

(Those who know Hebrew will be able to get a wider impression of Netanyahu's words in the past, before he decided to surrender to the demands of the ultra-Orthodox parties in order to win their votes - contrary to all economic logic and to the national interest that guided him in the past. Click here for the story that aired this week on Channel 12).

A letter signed by 280 of Israel's most senior economists has recently expressed opposition to the government's budget, which includes a significant increase in funding for the haredi sector. On Sunday, an additional group of 120 former senior economists in government ministries wrote In an open letter, in which they asserted that the funding allocations dictated by the coalition agreements would have “significant long-term implications for Israel’s economy and its future.” This money, they noted, “might well perpetuate a cycle of welfare dependency instead of cultivating independence, ” and as a result, “it’s self-evident that Israel will no longer be able to number itself among the world’s developed economies.”

The picture is clear, and it is no coincidence that there is not a single senior economist who supports the government's steps. Hiddush launched a petition [in Hebrew] against the scandal of the coalition funds, and in just a few days it has already been signed by more than 1500 people. We have no doubt that the government’s moves should also raise questions among philanthropists from the Diaspora, who are called upon by the Israeli government and various institutions to help with funding financial disparities in welfare and education projects. We will write more about this in the near future.