Despite the heavy price: "Living next to the corona"
The entry of Minister Nitzan Horowitz into the Ministry of Health was accompanied by the statement that the health system is not just Corona, but the fourth wave has preyed on the cards and the epidemic has again captured most of the attention of the Minister and senior ministry officials.
Prime Minister Bennett and the Minister of Health were able for the first time to formulate a strategy of living alongside the corona, with a clear preference for minimum restrictions.
Horowitz promised to strengthen the health care system and set the corona standards set by the previous government.
However, the hospitals are waiting for the implementation of staff additions of another 100 medical staff and 550 nursing staff.
Only one in three beats has been realized.
The minister has so far dealt with several storms, including the public hospital crisis and a strike that has severely affected patients.
He is in a strained relationship with hospital administrators who have raised allegations of disregard and inaccessibility against him in recent days, and is also in a collision with one of the major funds.
At the same time, Horowitz managed to obtain a budget increase of about NIS 2 billion for the health system, which will be used to increase the drug basket and strengthen the field of mental health.
It also appears that the Treasury has taken advantage of the lack of ministerial and administrative experience for the kidnappers and introduced some problematic clauses that the health system has been trying to avoid for years.
Alongside the budget increase, Horowitz has led several sectoral moves like the issue of gay blood donations and shortening queues for sex reassignment surgeries.
In his opening speech, the Minister promised to emphasize preventive medicine, even before the citizen arrives at the hospitals.
This promise is still waiting to be fulfilled.
Back to the old policy
Netanyahu left full political containers to his successors in the political system, and they certainly use - physically and metaphorically - the jet fuel they received.
Foreign Minister Lapid inaugurated the missions in the Emirates and Morocco, and will soon travel to Bahrain.
Netanyahu also has the negative sides of Netanyahu, that is, the hostility towards him from the liberal West in Europe and the US, the current government enjoys. .
Lapid casts his love on those liberal circles that are partly anti-Semitic and in any case weak.
They are unable, and perhaps even unwilling, to defend Israel on the day of command.
The flowering of naive plans such as Lapid's regarding Gaza, as well as the government's growing preoccupation with the unresolved Palestinian issue, do not improve Israel's status.
Except for headlines in the New York Times, this does not add any points to us.
The Abrahamic agreements that the government is interested in continuing, including Israel's status in the world, were not born out of kindness or preoccupation with the Palestinian issue.
In the political world, the strong are respected and not the just or the innocent.
The repair of this route can be done even after the first hundred days.
More outlines, less pedagogy
Since the Minister of Education, Yifat Shasha Bitton, took office, it seems that the Ministry of Education is very much involved in the management of the corona and too little in education.
Every decision made so far has dealt mainly with technical outlines, tests, vaccinators and his green daughter for teachers, and much less with pedagogy.
Despite Corona's nearly two years, we have yet to see a real plan to reduce learning gaps between strong and weak students in science, math and English - subjects critical to success. In addition, the gap has not yet been addressed by digital means, and this is mainly due to a huge shortage of budgets. For comparison, in the previous school year, Education Minister Yoav Galant brought NIS 4.2 billion to the education system - and this year only NIS 300 million was brought in to reduce the gaps, based on which the ministry scattered far too many promises. In the end, the minister missed the biggest opportunity of all - downsizing the classes. Students' emotional gaps also need to be addressed and addressed - but the education system is facing a huge shortage of educational psychologists in schools.
The new education minister has come into her life role with a lot of programs that can be good for the system, like moving on to five days of elementary school and reducing matriculation.
The problem is that none of the initiatives were set in the field.
Meaning - whatever you do now, you may not be able to do later.
The opening of the school year under the leadership of the new minister did not bring with it, unfortunately, any new line.
This is how it is when you do not want to get into a confrontation with the powerful teachers' organizations.
Tensions continue, but there is a budget
100 days to the new Bennett-Lapid government, and it seems that the security situation is actually getting worse, in almost every possible sector.
The first and most challenging arena of all is, of course, Iran. Despite the change in Bennett's policy - which, after years of bans, allowed, on the recommendation of the defense establishment, Israeli officials to discuss with the Americans the emerging nuclear agreement - there was no change in the policy of the Biden government, which still wants to return to Israel's worst nuclear deal. Ironically, the only ones preventing this now are the Iranians, who are putting difficulties on the process. The situation with Iran is defined by the defense establishment as a dangerous "shuffle", in which there is currently no credible economic or military threat to Tehran lest it continue its nuclear program, and it in turn enriches uranium without interruption. In practice, the defense establishment believes that Iran is currently "creeping" toward the nuclear program.
In the Palestinian arena, too, the situation seems to be escalating. Despite the statements of the heads of the defense establishment and the minister in charge after Operation The Wall Guard that "what was - will not be", Israel allowed quite a few humanitarian easing in the Gaza Strip, while giving up bargaining chips in favor of buying temporary peace. This is while Hamas did not commit to a long-term ceasefire and did not show a willingness to resolve the issue of prisoners and missing persons. Although Israel began attacking Gaza in response to the firing of incendiary balloons, this did not prevent terrorist organizations from firing rockets at the western Negev for several days in a row, and the defense establishment estimates that an operation in Gaza in the foreseeable future is a reasonable possibility. To this must be added the public storm surrounding the death of a border sniper, the late Bar-El Hadaria Shmueli, on the Gaza Strip border during the renewed demonstrations along the perimeter fence.
At the same time, Gantz recorded a certain achievement after meeting with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah. Somewhat puzzling as a "senior political figure," who made it clear that "there is no political process vis-à-vis the Palestinians nor will there be," even though he was aware of the meeting.
On a positive note, one of the great achievements of the defense system is reaching a multi-year budget.
Prime Minister Bennett, Finance Minister Lieberman and Defense Minister Ganz, all three current or former defense ministers, have reached an agreement on a budget with almost no media debate, allowing the defense establishment stability and ability to intensify preparations for an attack on Iran, upgrading the dilapidated fence on the Lebanese border and more. Relatively - Gantz and Kochavi's victory in the battle to fix the increase in pensions of military personnel - led them to lose in the media and public field, especially when at the same time the salaries of conscripts have not yet been raised.
What you attack from there, do not build from here
When it comes to settlement, the main weakness of the Bennett-Lapid government is that it is so heterogeneous.
A government made up of many parties from different ends of the political spectrum may find it difficult to advance significant political processes in Judea and Samaria. Its leaders have understood this.
In the meantime, however, the status quo on the construction issue has apparently been maintained.
The current government has received the support of the Americans for the convening of MTA (Supreme Planning Council), for the purpose of promoting about two thousand different building plans in Judea and Samaria.
Alongside this, Bennett was forced to swallow the bitter pill of approving about a thousand housing units for the Palestinians.
The vast majority, by the way, were previously approved by the cabinet in the previous government.
Although MTA approved construction plans in the settlements, after more than seven months in which it did not convene, but at the same time, thousands of plans that waited months, and even years, for approvals - were postponed for another time. In August, the Netanyahu government froze.
During her tenure, the IAEA convened for the last time in January 2021 and approved only about 800 housing units.
Preceded by Eviatar
On the other hand, the fact that this heterogeneous government can also be a significant advantage and allow it to advance processes that a traditional right-wing government could not do for years.
This was the case, for example, in the first test of the government around the establishment of the Eviatar outpost, when the settlers took advantage of the weakness of the previous government at the end of its days and the birth cords of the new government, and established facts on the ground.
Veteran settlers also found it difficult to imagine a scenario in which this story would end with the principled consent of this right-wing and left-wing government to establish an entirely new settlement.
Stop the authority
Two more tests face the Bennett-Lapid government.
One is dealing with the Palestinian takeover of Area C and state lands, a phenomenon that expanded during Netanyahu's government.
While in opposition, Bennett and Shaked attacked the government's handling of the issue and proposed a comprehensive plan.
So far, 100 days into their tenure, no significant move has been made in the field.
The second test is the issue of the evacuation of Khan al-Ahmar, a move that the previous government has repeatedly rejected, and was therefore attacked by those who today constitute the right wing of the coalition.
What you see from there you do not see from here?
Maybe.
Meanwhile, the government has asked the High Court to postpone the evacuation for at least six months.
Speaking separately, sentences separately
It seems that on the 100th anniversary of Bennett's government, in the legal sphere at least, it cannot be said that the government acted "ten degrees to the right."
The government has asked for another six months to postpone the hearing of the illegal Bedouin outpost Khan al-Ahmar, which has been helped to act against the law by the European Union, and which the court has ruled should be evacuated.
This procedure lasted ten years and now there is another request for a postponement of the eviction, in contrast to the criticism that Bennett hurled at the previous government.
As I recall, he promised that "in a state of law, the law is enforced, even if the international community opposes and threatens. My party will make sure that this happens."
That did not happen.
It does not seem that things will be different when it comes to evacuating the families who illegally invaded Jewish homes in Shimon Hatzadik in East Jerusalem, where international pressure is also evident, and the issue even came up in the personal meeting with President Biden.
On another issue, regarding the representation of the opposition in Knesset committees, the High Court issued a yellow card when it ruled that "after the dialogue between the coalition representatives and the opposition did not yield agreements, the Knesset Speaker and the Knesset committee can be expected to work to determine the committees."
Splitting the powers of the ombudsman, as promised by Justice Minister Gideon Saar, has not yet taken place. The legislation, which Saar and Shaked sought to promote, has meanwhile been stuck, and is likely to be discriminated against due to coalition disagreements.
However, Saar can boast of a basic law: the right to justice, which is in the drafting stages and will come up in the winter session as a government bill.
The law is expected to regulate the rights of the suspect in detention, interrogation, detention assessments, legal proceedings and immunities, and has won the support of the Bar Association.
The Ministerial Committee on Legislative Affairs will soon convene to select the next four Supreme Court justices.
You can just wait and see if there will be a ten degree shift to the right.
Where is the enforcement?
Despite the formation of a government with the support of the RAAM party, the change government has so far failed to deal with crime in general and the Arab sector in particular.
The highlight was last week, when unknown individuals fired - for the first time and daring - at the home of the wing chief, Jamal Khachrush.
Enforcement of corona regulations is also facing difficulties, given the "inclusion policy" adopted by the government.
The number of citizens who need isolation currently stands at more than 170,000 people, and the Ministry of Internal Security admits that this is an unenforceable amount.
But there is also a line.
After years of activity without a multi-year budget, which directly affected activity in the police and the IPS, a budget agreement was signed this week for these two organizations for the years 2022-2021. Advanced tools for managing manpower and salary resources effectively for the coming years, while fixing planning, streamlining and empowerment processes.
After years of poor organization and receiving uncovered checks, the budget requires the police and the IPS to run the organization in an orderly fashion for the first time. , There will be an addition of 800 standards for 2022, and another 170 standards in 2023 for the benefit of training and national projects.
More PR than action
Months have passed since the formation of the new government, but it seems that the Ministry of Welfare is now mainly involved in public relations.
Three weeks ago, they announced that the name of the ministry would be changed from "Ministry of Labor, Welfare and Social Services" to "Ministry of Welfare and Social Security."
According to them, this was committed following the split from the labor arm and its transfer to the responsibility of the Ministry of Economy.
But there are quite a few issues that need immediate attention and have not yet been addressed.
One of them, which is amplified during the Tishrei holiday period, is poverty.
The findings of the National Insurance Institute show that there are about two million poor people in Israel, and the corona crisis has even led to a significant decline in the standard of living in the country.
The Ministry of Welfare promised to increase the food security program to more than NIS 100 million, but this has not yet happened.
The new minister, Meir Cohen, has not yet launched a plan to fight poverty - an issue that in his days in the opposition he spoke sharply about.
The issue of increasing the disability pension is also not dealt with enthusiastically at the Ministry of Welfare.
Although the fight for the disabled was done in front of the Ministry of Finance, the responsibility for people with disabilities lies with the Ministry of Welfare, whose voice is not heard.
Another thing to keep in mind is the severe shortage of caregivers for the elderly - both in nursing homes and geriatric institutions and in those employed in homes.
For example, the shortage of auxiliary staff in institutions is estimated at about 2,500 caregivers.
Meanwhile, everyone is dragging their feet, while both families and institutions are groaning under the burden.
It's good to have a budget, but where's the policy?
Familiar with the hysterical guy, who when he is told he has to fly abroad in a few hours for a day or two he starts packing hysterically? Exactly what this government has done in the last two months economically.
It has grouped different components of different plans and put them into laws - the Budget Law and another series of laws adjacent to it, by rough sorting and not matter-of-fact sorting. The clear line is that the government is not allowed to raise taxes, but it must put in more money. so what are we doing? Collecting new clauses from old proposals that will reach into the pockets of citizens, but will not meet the ambiguous definition of "taxes." Levy on sugary drinks - sounds great. Disposal of disposable utensils - excellent. Congestion fee - beautiful! Expensive property tax - charming. Violation of pension linkages, breach of the budget framework set by law - these are certainly not taxes, so why not? Cutting day care centers for ultra-Orthodox mothers, cutting budget budgets for ultra-Orthodox and Judaism - it probably does not bother potential voters.
So yes, it is good to have a budget and the law of arrangements and it is good to have a government.
Anyone who is not anarchist understands that a bad government is better than "no government."
Even a crooked and confused budget is better than "no budget", after the peak of the epidemic trauma is behind us.
But there is nothing that makes this collection of random economic decisions a policy.
Repairs are required on public transportation
The budget in the Ministry of Transportation is increasing, investment in infrastructure is underway, roads are under construction, a light rail is being built and other plans are on the table.
But - and this is a big but - the correction of the situation in public transport is not really advanced.
The minister in charge, Merav Michaeli, has stated more than once since the beginning of his term that public transportation is at the heart of the problem, and the public is suffering. She knows that in the absence of proper, fast and efficient public transport, there will still be too many vehicles on the roads and the congestion will not decrease, but rather the opposite. And the problem was not born yesterday: for a decade public transport has only been deteriorating. None of the four ministers who have been in the last decade - including Michaeli - have really been able to produce a solution. The result - people prefer vehicles, and Tel Aviv and the center of the country are tired of them. Instead of traveling and enjoying public transportation to anywhere in the big volume, and also in and out of the periphery, in practice there are no high-speed trains, and some of the bus lines have been cut. The situation of drivers is generally small, and apart from planning there is still no massive absorption of new drivers (along with claims of unrealistic wages, which does not attract others to come to work). To this must be added the high taxi prices. Nothing indicates progress. Other than plans uploaded, nothing has changed in recent months. Therefore, if you want mobility,Even if it involves traffic jams, a vehicle is still needed.
The expectation was that at least some of the regulations would come in quickly, it would not take a year of work to do so.
If there is a claim that your predecessors did not do enough, it is in the power of the person who heads the ministry to make quick decisions and sign regulations.
bus?
If he gets to the station it's already good.
Missing lines?
Look where it's missing - and make a change.
Poor schedule?
Instruct companies to change this immediately.
It does not need committees.
Metropolitan transport authorities would have solved much of the problem.
But this is not happiness, and it is doubtful whether it will be given the green light.
The lack of coordination hurts the public
The big problem now is that there is a head, who has the power to change things relatively quickly out of necessity, and at the same time is too responsible for the transport issue - the ministry, consultants, department heads, local authorities, transport operators - and there is no exhaustive dialogue.
This lack of coordination knocks only one side - the public.
Participated in the preparation of the article - Meital Yasur Beit-Or, Ariel Kahana, Noam (Devol) Dvir, Lilach Shoval, Efrat Porcher, Itzik Saban, Yair Altman, Eran Bar-Tal and Shlomi Diaz.