Ultra-Orthodox Parties Move Toward Coalition Revolt After Childcare Subsidy Bill Is Shelved

A severe coalition crisis erupted Tuesday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told ultra-Orthodox lawmakers that the so-called daycare bill, which would restore state subsidies for day care for young yeshiva students who received draft orders, will not pass in the current Knesset term. The announcement angered the ultra-Orthodox factions, which saw it as a breach of coalition understandings and began considering steps that could bring down the government.

In response, United Torah Judaism chairman Moshe Gafni said the two Degel HaTorah members on the Knesset Finance Committee would vote against all budget transfers brought for approval that day. The move was described as a serious threat to the coalition’s ability to govern and advance its budget. At the same time, Shas and United Torah Judaism informed coalition chairman Ofir Katz on Monday that they would not vote with the coalition in the plenum.

The joint statement said, “We have now informed the coalition chairman that because the daycare bill is not being put on the agenda, we will not vote today in favor of coalition legislation in the plenum.” Degel HaTorah is also preparing for the possibility of elections, with a meeting planned for Thursday of all local faction heads and the party’s Knesset members to begin election readiness.

The bill, initiated by Gafni, was meant to ensure that a parent’s employment status would not be considered when determining priority for daycare enrollment and state participation in tuition if the parent studies in a college or yeshiva. It was also intended to bypass the attorney general’s decision to halt tax refunds on donations to ultra-Orthodox institutions. Ultra-Orthodox parties had pushed to pass it within two weeks, but the current outlook is that the effort has collapsed. Political and legal assessments say the High Court of Justice is unlikely to allow daycare subsidies even after legislation, unless a broader law regulates the status of Torah students. The crisis comes amid wider tensions between the government and the religious world over arrests of yeshiva students.