For the first time since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Prime Minister's Office will hold its annual toast in honor of Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) in the Jerusalem Theater, and not in the Prime Minister's Office building as has been done for many years.
The Yediot Aharonot newspaper reports that breakfast and lunch will be served in the theater to those in attendance, instead of the modest refreshments that are usually served at a toast organized by the Prime Minister's Office.
Prime Minister Yair Lapid will also arrive at the event to greet the workers, and the costs for the large security required by the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) will also be added to the total costs of the event.
Government officials told Yediot Aharonot that the decision to hold the event in the Jerusalem Theater was a puzzling one and a waste of public money, and that no government ministry has ever held such an event outside its own building.
The Prime Minister's Office said in response, "In order to save costs, two additional events were held as part of the seminar for women and men of the Prime Minister's Office: The semi-annual toast and the annual award ceremony for the office's outstanding employees. The seminar was approved by the relevant authorities, and was organized in accordance with the directives of the Ministry of Finance, and all the required tenders were held. It should be noted that seminars of this type are held as a matter of routine in a variety of different government ministries."