Israeli Government Slashes Budgets for Civilian Ministries to Fund Defense
Translated & summarized from Ynet by baba
The Israeli government is approving a NIS 2.6 billion budget cut across civilian ministries for urgent defense needs, drawing criticism from ministers. The funds will be taken from flexible budgets, impacting future programs. Key ministries like Education, Health, Welfare, and National Security will see significant reductions, with health officials warning of severe service impacts. Notably, coalition funds were not affected by this cut.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Israeli government to cut NIS 2.6 billion from civilian ministries for defense procurement.
- Education, Health, Welfare, and National Security ministries face significant budget reductions.
- Coalition funds were excluded from both recent defense-related budget cuts.
- Health Ministry warns of severe impact on public services and mental health support.
- Welfare Ministry states cuts will harm vulnerable populations and essential social services.
The Israeli government is set to approve a significant NIS 2.6 billion budget cut across various ministries, designated for urgent defense procurement. This move follows a similar NIS 1 billion cut just days prior for Apache helicopter purchases, which was drawn from development funds for the Arab sector. Notably, in both instances, coalition funds remained untouched.
The latest cut will be a flat reduction of approximately 5% from the development and procurement budgets of all government ministries. This unusual decision, made just nine days before elections, will impact key civilian ministries. The education system will lose NIS 285 million, the Ministry of National Security, including the police, will be reduced by NIS 225 million, the health system by NIS 150 million, and the Ministry of Welfare by NIS 140 million.
Despite recommendations from senior Treasury professionals to draw the funds from coalition budgets, the government is proceeding with the broad-based cut. This reduction will affect about 4% of the flexible budget in each ministry, impacting future programs rather than employee salaries or fixed commitments. Senior Treasury officials acknowledged that the decision to implement a uniform cut across ministries was made in response to concerns from ministers about specific program needs.
The Ministry of Education will need to find savings from non-core areas like youth movements and external programs, as 90% of its budget is allocated to teacher and kindergarten staff salaries. The Ministry of Health, already facing deficits and the strain of the pandemic and ongoing war, warned that this cut, adding to previous reductions, will severely impact public health services, mental health support, and emergency preparedness.
The Ministry of Welfare stated the cut will critically harm its ability to provide essential services to vulnerable populations, including victims of violence, individuals with disabilities, and women in prostitution. The Ministry of National Security, however, indicated that the NIS 225 million cut would be taken from its emergency budget, not operational funds, thus not affecting security and law enforcement agencies' functions.
Mentioned
