Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Opposition Leader Yair Lapid today for a security briefing, during which the demand to increase the defense budget was also discussed.
Netanyahu asked to reopen the Budget Law in order to allocate additional funds to the defense establishment. During the meeting, Lapid expressed support for increasing the IDF budget but set a condition regarding the source of the funding.
“I support the proposal and support transferring the funds, because the IDF needs to be strengthened, but the source of the funding cannot be tax increases on the middle class and reservists, which is where you are leading us," Lapid said.
The Opposition Leader demanded that the money instead come from the cancellation of coalition funds and from budgets which, he claimed, are being used to finance Haredi draft evasion.
“Include in the proposal the cancellation of the corrupt coalition funds and the tens of billions of shekels that you are currently transferring to finance Haredi draft evasion - and we will support the proposal in the Knesset as well," Lapid said.
Likud rejected Lapid’s claims, arguing that increasing the defense budget would not require higher taxes.
“Lapid’s claims are baseless and false. State revenues were higher than expected as a result of the government’s economic policies, and consequently, the deficit is also lower than expected," the party stated.
According to Likud, under these circumstances additional funds can be transferred to the defense establishment without raising taxes. The party also rejected Lapid’s claims regarding the scale of coalition funds and budgets transferred to the Haredi sector, stating, “There have never been such sums allocated to coalition funds and the Haredi sector - not even close."
Likud escalated its criticism, accusing Lapid of “abandoning the security of the State of Israel because of cheap political considerations."
The Opposition Leader’s office responded: “Likud is once again lying and abandoning the security of the state."
Lapid’s office emphasized that during the closed-door meeting, which was attended by IDF representatives, the Opposition Leader made clear that he supports transferring the funds.
“The IDF must be given all the tools necessary to complete its missions," his office stated.
Lapid nevertheless maintained his position regarding the source of the funding, demanding that the money not come from tax increases or from increasing the burden on “the working and serving public."
According to Lapid, the additional defense spending should instead be financed through coalition funds and budgets which he claims are transferred each year to finance Haredi draft evasion.