Netanyahu Tells Ultra-Orthodox Parties Haredi Daycare Subsidy Bill Is Dead

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told senior figures in the ultra-Orthodox parties on Tuesday that the daycare subsidy bill will not pass in the current Knesset. According to reports from the talks, Netanyahu said he does not have a coalition majority for the measure because some lawmakers from Likud and other coalition partners plan to vote against it.

The bill was meant to restore daycare subsidies for young yeshiva students who received draft orders. The announcement, made after weeks of pressure and promises that the legislation would advance, sparked anger among Haredi MKs, who had insisted the bill would still pass in this term.

In response, Degel Hatorah chairman MK Moshe Gafni told the coalition that his party’s two representatives on the Knesset Finance Committee would vote against every budget transfer submitted for approval that day. The committee began its discussions as scheduled, but was closed minutes later after Degel Hatorah made its position clear.

The ultra-Orthodox factions are now demanding rapid passage of a Basic Law on Torah study, but it is unclear whether that initiative can win a coalition majority either.