Professor Yaron Zelekha, former Finance Ministry Accountant General, responded on Wednesday evening to the warnings by economists of economic damage that would be caused to Israel following the judicial reforms.
"These things are very exaggerated," Zelekha said on Radio Kol Chai. "The credit rating is the risk assessment that the rating companies attribute to the possibility that the Israeli government will not repay its debts, but since the government's debt is relatively low, the risk to the credit rating is not significant. The assessments that were heard are mixing between economic and political positions."
On the economic policy that the government is pursuing, he said, "The Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance came in with a new and fresh spirit that should be welcomed. The first change is the decision to freeze the inputs that are the responsibility of the government, in contrast to the previous one that only fueled inflation. Another change is the intention is to break the power of the monopolies and especially the exclusive importers."
Zelkeha also addressed the issue of increasing competition, saying, "The government will need a lot of intelligence, determination and strength. The barriers have been built up over years and a broad action by the government is needed, which will be joined by the reduction of tariffs and the abolition of import quotas and the enforcement of competition laws."