Knesset Speaker Yariv Levin announced on Tuesday that the Knesset would suspend all legislative activity in the plenum until next Monday, effectively giving the expected incoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu more time to be sworn into his coalition.
Netanyahu has until Wednesday evening to notify President Isaac Herzog that he has formed a government. However, he is not ready to be able to finalize by then three legislative changes demanded by his far-right and ultra-Orthodox political partners as conditions for swearing in the government.
While he will still have to inform the president that he has formed the government by Wednesday evening, the freezing of the Knesset – apparently agreed to by both the incoming opposition and the coalition – will mean that Netanyahu will not need to take the oath before nearly two weeks, until January 2. This would extend his legislative track to finalize the requested laws before being sworn in to his government.
After informing Herzog that he has made the deal with his far-right and ultra-Orthodox partners to form a government, Netanyahu must also inform the Speaker of the Knesset, in accordance with Article 13 of the Basic Law of Israel. ‘Israel: The Government. Levin, a close ally of Netanyahu and a lawmaker from his Likud party, must then inform the Knesset, which can only happen if the Knesset plenum meets. After briefing the Knesset, which will now be postponed until Monday’s next legislative session, Levin must convene the plenum within seven days to swear in the government.
Of course, Netanyahu can schedule the [swearing-in] vote for an earlier date, such as Wednesday or Thursday” next week, said Assaf Shapira, director of the political reform program at the Israel Democracy Institute.
By postponing the next legislative session to Monday, instead of Wednesday and Thursday, Levin has effectively given Netanyahu a few more days to exert legislative pressure, although this comes at the cost of not being able to push laws forward for the next five days. next days.
Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu (R) speaks with MK Yariv Levin during Levin’s election as Knesset Speaker, December 13, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
The incoming opposition apparently agreed to the deal as part of its strategy to slow down the legislative process in hopes of heightening tensions between parties in the incoming coalition.
While this gives Netanyahu more time to deliver the legislation to his partners, it also forces Netanyahu to get their agreement on a government announcement before the legislation is finalized, since Wednesday’s session is cancelled.
Required by the next presumed police minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, a bill to formalize political control over the police force has passed its deadline. first lecture Tuesday afternoon. It will return to a special committee on Wednesday and Thursday in preparation for its second and third readings – final – which could take place on Monday.
A second bill to satisfy coalition partners Bezalel Smotrich and Aryeh Deri will also continue to be debated by a second committee on Wednesday and Thursday, hoping for a vote on Monday. This bill would amend the Basic Law: the government to appoint Smotrich as minister responsible for West Bank settlement construction within the Ministry of Defense and allow Deri to become interior and health minister, despite his recent suspended sentence for tax evasion, which, although the law is murky, currently prevents him from being appointed minister.
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