The chairman of the Religious Zionism Party and Israel’s Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, published a strongly worded statement ahead of a vote scheduled to take place tomorrow in the Knesset plenum.
The vote concerns approval of an order raising the VAT exemption on personal imports and purchases from abroad to $130. The minister called on citizens to closely monitor how their elected representatives vote on the measure.
“Watch tomorrow and see who works for you, and who works against you in the service of the monopolies," Smotrich said in the message he released.
He urged the public to pay attention to lawmakers’ conduct on the issue. According to the minister, the debate over the exemption threshold pits the interests of ordinary citizens against the economic interests of major business groups.
In his statement, Smotrich reviewed the steps that preceded the current proposal, which is set to be brought for approval tomorrow.
“Under my authority as Finance Minister, I raised the exemption threshold from $75 to $150 just a few months ago," he explained.
He added that a group of Knesset members chose to vote against the move, claiming that they preferred to support wealthy business interests that profit at the expense of Israeli consumers.
“A group of Knesset members who, for some reason, prefer to support tycoons who profit on the backs of Israeli citizens voted against it," he said.
Following the opposition encountered by the original initiative, the Finance Minister decided to revise the exemption threshold to the current proposed level.
“In response, I updated the exemption to $130," Smotrich noted in his direct appeal to the public.
He concluded with a call to voters: “Pay close attention to which of your elected representatives is acting on your behalf and who prefers that you pay more."