Political Mud-Slinging Over Finance Committee: Who Is Blocking Northern Fortification Funds?

Mud-slinging between the coalition and the opposition has erupted over the convening of the Finance Committee on Tuesday, which was exceptionally approved by the Knesset Legal Advisor, Adv. Sagit Afik. The coalition claims that the opposition is blocking the transfer of the budget for fortifying northern communities, while the opposition insists that it was the coalition itself that decided to prioritize coalition funds over the budget for the North.

In a surprising and unusual move, Adv. Sagit Afik approved the convening of a special meeting of the Finance Committee to transfer about 500 million shekels in coalition funds during the recess. A source familiar with the details told Walla that Afik preferred to approve these six requests to limit the scope and prevent Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana from approving 12 additional requests.

The decision followed a Finance Committee meeting last week that dispersed without votes due to a dispute between Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and the ultra-Orthodox parties.

Adv. Afik determined that this is a continuation of the same meeting, meaning no additional approval from the Consent Committee is required. This allows the coalition to advance the transfer of hundreds of millions of shekels, including at least 270 million shekels for ultra-Orthodox education, 124 million shekels for Minister Orit Strock's office, and about 120 million shekels for religious services.

A political battle over the budget for fortifying northern communities

A political battle has intensified over the budget for fortifying northern communities. The coalition claims the opposition is delaying a request of nearly one billion shekels (669.4 million in expenditure and 330 million in commitment authorization). The money is intended to implement the government's decision to fortify communities within a nine-kilometer range of the Lebanese border, including increasing grants for protected spaces (Mamad) in private homes.

The dispute is not about the fortification budget itself, but the procedure. The coalition claims that without Consent Committee approval, the request cannot be brought to the Finance Committee. The opposition argues that once Adv. Afik approved the meeting, the fortification budget could have been included, but the coalition chose to prioritize its own funds.

"I opposed the convening of the committee altogether. Once Sagit Afik approved the meeting, the coalition chose which requests to vote on. Why didn't you include the North and preferred to plunder more coalition funds? From the moment you opened the meeting, set priorities. Why would I oppose the budget for fortifying the North? Why did the committee chairman, MK Milwidsky, choose to bring the exempt institutions and religious services?" said MK Merav Ben-Ari, the opposition coordinator.

Consequently, the Finance Committee is set to discuss the transfer of half a billion shekels in coalition funds tomorrow, while the request for fortifying the North remains off the agenda. Both sides continue to trade blame for the deadlock.