The Knesset Finance Committee voted, after three postponements, to approve a nearly 1.8 billion-shekel cut in the national budget in order to pay for the recent war in Lebanon. The cut subtracts some 6% of most government ministries' budgets.
Three Labor Party MKs had refused to vote for the cuts, saying the necessary money could be found elsewhere and that they could not justify betraying their socially-conscious voters. Despite a Labor Party decision that they must vote for the cuts, the three held their ground. In the event, they were replaced by more toe-the-line party MKs in time for today's vote - which passed by a 10-9 margin.
Coalition whip MK Avigdor Yitzchaki (Kadima) said the coalition would not be able to work in this manner for very long. He recommended, as he did last week, that his party seek additional coalition partners.
On another front, the Knesset Education Committee voted to approve the inclusion of nurseries and kindergartens in the long-school-day program. The vote was originally to have been held on Monday, but was canceled in the wake of a yelling match between MK Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism) and Education Minister Yuli Tamir (Labor).
Minister Tamir had said that the hareidi-religious kindergartens would not be included in her long-school-day proposal. She was emphatic that her ministry's policy was to give preference to the public school system over the private systems. This infuriated MK Gafni, who said that her remarks were a "declaration of war upon my children and the entire hareidi educational system. No previous education minister ever did this, not even Shulamit Aloni or Yossi Sarid [of the far-left Meretz party]." As a result of the dispute, the vote was called off.
By today, however, an arrangement had been agreed upon that totally satisfied Moshe Gafni: the kindergartens need merely change their status and join up with an existing hareidi-religious school network. The committee convened today, quickly and quietly, and the proposal passed without incident.
Three Labor Party MKs had refused to vote for the cuts, saying the necessary money could be found elsewhere and that they could not justify betraying their socially-conscious voters. Despite a Labor Party decision that they must vote for the cuts, the three held their ground. In the event, they were replaced by more toe-the-line party MKs in time for today's vote - which passed by a 10-9 margin.
Coalition whip MK Avigdor Yitzchaki (Kadima) said the coalition would not be able to work in this manner for very long. He recommended, as he did last week, that his party seek additional coalition partners.
On another front, the Knesset Education Committee voted to approve the inclusion of nurseries and kindergartens in the long-school-day program. The vote was originally to have been held on Monday, but was canceled in the wake of a yelling match between MK Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism) and Education Minister Yuli Tamir (Labor).
Minister Tamir had said that the hareidi-religious kindergartens would not be included in her long-school-day proposal. She was emphatic that her ministry's policy was to give preference to the public school system over the private systems. This infuriated MK Gafni, who said that her remarks were a "declaration of war upon my children and the entire hareidi educational system. No previous education minister ever did this, not even Shulamit Aloni or Yossi Sarid [of the far-left Meretz party]." As a result of the dispute, the vote was called off.
By today, however, an arrangement had been agreed upon that totally satisfied Moshe Gafni: the kindergartens need merely change their status and join up with an existing hareidi-religious school network. The committee convened today, quickly and quietly, and the proposal passed without incident.