MK David Bitan (Likud) Chairman of the Economy Committee at the debate on the approval of the obligation of license plates for electric tools/Knesset spokespersons
As Passover approaches, government ministers and Knesset members go out in a shaming festival against companies in the private sector that are raising prices during a war that has been going on for six months. For them, it is a substitute for sour cream.
It started during the publicity of Economy Minister Nir Barkat to implement legislation known as "what is good for Europe is good for Israel". This is about easing regulations in ports and the Standards Institute. The reform has not been approved by legislation, but even if there are savings it is not certain that they will be passed on to the consumer.
The Minister of Economy was not content with that and started a sticker war against food companies that dared to raise prices. Recently, a black list of companies that raised prices such as Vysotsky or Strauss, and a green list of friendly companies for the consumer's pocket is published.
In practice, this is a graphic trick that could have turned into a child's game, but nothing more. For example, who can say 'Bashloof' whether Osem or Williger are on the black or green list?
A particularly blatant shaming was launched the other day against Strauss, a 'most brazen' company that presented excellent reports and distributed a dividend. This is the place to mention that the director general of Strauss Shai in ABD carries a charged relationship with Nir Barkat from the time he served as director general of the treasury during Moshe Kahlon's time.
BAD has no intention of apologizing for the excellent reports and this angered the Minister of Economy even before he knew that the Strauss family took advantage of the reports Those who are listed for the sale of shares for NIS 300 million:
"Strauss, which is on the blacklist after raising prices during the war, has lost its shame and is breaking records of disconnection," stated Barkat and added: "After complaining about the loss of profits, they suddenly found hundreds of millions of NIS to distribute as dividends. I call on the public not to to purchase Strauss products".
Barkat and Bitan. Pyrotechnics that turn the fire to the business sector / Flash 90, Jonathan Zindel
Minister Barkat is treading on a slippery slope: a brazen call by a senior minister in Israel to boycott a product will in the future lead to a boycott of Ben & Jerry's or products originating from beyond the green line.
Barkat was not content with that and added: "Unfortunately, the public's calls for a price freeze during this period were not answered. This is a spitting in the face of a public that is loyal to you and enriches your coffers and your pocket. It was expected of you to voluntarily get under the stretcher and help. Solidarity is the lifeblood of Israeli society."
I will paraphrase his words with topical changes: "Unfortunately, the public's calls for the early elections were not answered. This is a slap in the face of the public that is loyal to you and enriches your coffers and your pockets. It was expected of you (especially my ultra-Orthodox friends) to voluntarily get under the stretcher. Solidarity is the lifeblood of Israeli society."
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Passover night. The Ministry of Economy forgot to update on time the drop in wheat prices, matzahs were baked at expensive prices and so will their price this year/ShutterStock
Now let's check how the Passover basket will look for the Seder night table consumed by a Jew or even someone who has forgotten to be Jewish. The basic products for the holiday table are usually matzah, eggs and poultry as well as fish. The price of flour soared following the war in Ukraine and as a result the prices will be fueled.
Since then they have decreased, but because the Ministry of Economy forgot to update on time the drop in wheat prices, the matzahs were baked at expensive prices and so will their price this year. The default is registered in the name of the government. Eggs and poultry will become more expensive mainly because of the war in the north.
Here it is convenient to blame Hezbollah, but let's not absolve the responsibility of a government that hastily evicted the residents of the north because of the failure in Gaza and to this day has not returned to their homes. The planning of the egg and poultry farm would have prevented the zigzag prices that are expected to drop right after the holiday.
We have arrived at fish whose price is not affected by the fish farms that have been eliminated and whose entire production can be stored in a large aquarium. Consumers are at the mercy of fish farmers from China and the East because of the reform. Maritime transport difficulties will lead to shortages. The cost of living should be regulated by the Treasury and the Ministry of Economy, which are busy with politics.
Netanyahu. We're fed up with promises, we're done with pranks/Roni Knafo
And when it seemed that all the peaks of cynicism were broken, we reached a new bottom. The Economy Committee chaired by MK David Bitan (Likud) approved for the first reading his proposal to amend the Consumer Protection Law to combat price increases during war and emergency situations.
According to the proposal, when declaring a state of emergency, the Minister of Economy can declare anyone who raises prices as having exerted unfair influence. The Consumer Protection Authority and the Treasury will prepare the list of products to which the announcement will apply. Anyone who raises prices will be fined and an order will be issued to stop the violation.
Questions such as what is a "substantial violation," what is an "emergency period," and what does the list of products that will be subject to supervision include - remain unanswered. While companies that raise prices because Increasing the prices of goods such as coffee and cocoa are threatened with fines, the government gets away with it.
The government actually approves the increase in the prices of electricity, water, property taxes and gasoline for cars and causes the cost of living to increase. So will MK Bitan's proposal also be valid for his government responsible for increasing prices for the holidays? Undoubtedly
the property tax rate is an excellent example of absurdity. The decision on the tariff was supposed to be made by September 2023, but because of the elections for local authorities, no local authority dared to raise a tariff before the elections.
That is why the property tax for 2024 was supposed to remain unchanged, but then MK Yaakov Asher, the chairman of the Interior Committee, conspired and determined that the decision regarding the property tax rate for 2024 would be postponed until the end of June 2024 with retroactive effect from January 2024 and the heads of the authorities would be given a second chance.
MK Yaakov Asher gave the heads of the authorities the possibility to raise property taxes retrospectively/Photo Marcelo
The default government is skillfully reproducing its age-old specialty: shifting the fire towards the business sector. A significant part of the price increases are her responsibility and no pyrotechnics will make it up. But surprisingly, one gets the impression that even this does not bother her.
The ministerial committee on the cost of living met only twice in the past year and since then its traces have not been known. Therefore, even if Bibi Netanyahu disguises himself as a refueler in the next elections and stars in Likud broadcasts, he has a stake in the gasoline pump, do not buy the "wizard's" promises to lower gasoline prices.
If Netanyahu promises the soldiers land at floating prices, you will treat it as if he were marketing land on the moon at a bargain price. Our oath is one thousand and one of the promises regarding the cost of living and housing that the eternal prime minister is showering us with. I wish Netanyahu would devote one-tenth of the time he devotes to the evasion law to cost-of-living issues.
Issues such as bringing forward the elections, spitting in the face of the secular public, enriching the coffers of the ultra-Orthodox public and escaping the burden of the famous stretcher, all drain into the conscription law. We got to the end of the pyrotechnics stunts and we wanted to throw up. It is recommended to leave the Shirabloff games to trackers.
More on the same topic:
Nir Barkat
David Bitan
Cost of living
food prices
fuel
property tax
electrical power