Gantz’s party refuses to join Knesset votes as coalition tensions worsen

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Lawmakers from Benny Gantz’s party refused to join in voting in the Knesset plenum on Wednesday due to a dispute within the coalition, allowing the opposition to pass a series of bills in their preliminary votes.

Kahol Lavan lawmakers refused to participate in protest over the coalition’s failure to move ahead with legislation increasing pensions for Israel Defense Forces career officers. As a result, the coalition barred all of its lawmakers from voting, enabling the opposition, led by Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud, to pass a series of private members’ bills in their preliminary votes.

A private member’s bill, as opposed to a government bill, is a legislative proposal put forward by a member of the Knesset who does not hold a position in the cabinet or government.

Likud also sought to bring to a vote a bill forming a state commission of inquiry into the activities of Fifth Dimension, a firm which was once headed by Defense Mister and Kahol Lavan leader Benny Gantz. However, the coalition later removed it from the agenda.

Earlier this week, Kahol Lavan refused to participate in a vote on a government bill, citing “the harm to national security and a breach of coalition obligations over the last several months.”

Wednesday morning, the Kahol Lavan announced it would not participate in votes on private members’ bills that day. The party made an exception, agreeing to vote against three laws put forward by the opposition, which Kahol Lavan had deemed to be “issues that would have a material, immediate impact if passed.” In response, the coalition announced that it was “all or nothing,” and released its lawmakers from the plenum.

Over the course of the day, 11 pieces of opposition legislation passed their preliminary votes. Among them were bills regulating the placement of battery-charging facilities on gasoline stations, making it illegal to impersonate a nursery school teacher, an increase in government allowances for children, discounts on municipal taxes based on the number of children in a family and allowing families of terror victims to join legal proceedings.

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Two other bills passed preliminary votes with the coalition’s support. In addition, the Knesset passed a bill proposed by Likud lawmaker Tzahi Hanegbi, which seeks to form a parliamentary committee to investigate the high price Israel paid for submarines acquired from Germany.

“Today, two clear facts were established in the Knesset – that the opposition is the one that controlled the plenum and that there is no government in Israel,” said Yariv Levin, the Likud faction leader and opposition whip.

“The worst prime minister in the country’s history has failed for the third week in a row to impose order on his senior ministers. This is not what leadership looks like. This is what bankruptcy looks like. This government needs to go. We will continue to do everything in our power to ensure that it happens, and it will happen,” he said.

At this point, it appears that the main roadblock to passing Gantz’s budgetary pensions law is the opposition of three coalition lawmakers. Coalition sources said they believed the dispute would be settled by next week, and a new vote on the bill could take place on Monday.