In a Friday morning meeting, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, MK Aryeh Deri (Shas), and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich (Religious Zionism) agreed to cancel the proposed freeze of Bituach Leumi (National Insurance Institute) stipends.
The freeze would have prevented disability, pension, child disability, unemployment, and other long-term stipends from rising in parallel to inflation. The decision not to freeze the stipends will not apply to the child stipend, which will still be frozen.
Instead, it was agreed to raise the Bituach Leumi premiums by a parallel sum, in order to keep the fiscal framework and the faith in the market, without taking aim directly at the elderly, disabled, victims of terror attacks, bereaved parents, and other weaker sectors.
The government renewed discussions on the 2025 State budget nearly a day after they began. Over Thursday night, the Finance and Defense ministries reached agreements, and with the defense budget reaching around 118 billion NIS - about 20 billion NIS more than the initial sum the Finance Ministry requested to set. In addition, the differences between the Finance and Public Security Ministry have decreased, and the sides are expected to reach an agreement soon.
The government believes that the vote will be held Friday. Meanwhile, Culture and Sport Minister Miki Zohar announced that he will vote against the budget
Zohar added that it is "embarrassing and shameful" for the Finance Ministry and Budget Department, who are the ones who decided that there is no longer a need for a culture and sports budget in the country. I in my innocence thought that they would understand, especially now, that we have an obligation - perhaps more than ever - to strengthen and preserve the moments of happiness that the culture and sport bring us within the daily complexities of life in the State of Israel."