The Cost of Living Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Netanyahu, will convene tomorrow at 19 p.m. for the second discussion. Ministers Barkat and Smotrich are supposed to take part in the cabinet. Recall that at the first cabinet meeting two weeks ago, the prime minister asked the ministers to propose plans related to their ministries.
In a discussion to be held tomorrow, Economy Minister Nir Barkat is expected to present his plan to promote free imports to Israel according to accepted European standards – a law that will deal with dismantling the import chain. The main goal of the law, which is expected to be presented to Netanyahu tomorrow evening, is to make sure that every product coming from Europe will not have to undergo tests either at ports or at the Standards Institute, but will go straight to the shelves and to the consumer. This is based on the understanding that the regulation currently in place in Israel with regard to imports is very onerous and in fact makes it more expensive and in many cases prevents imports to Israel. This is how Israel Hayom found out.
Economy Minister Nir Barkat, Photo: Oren Ben Hakon
In Barkat's view, product control should be carried out on products that have already reached store shelves by stationing inspectors, and significant sanctions will be imposed against importers who break the law and violate one of the regulations, up to a criminal record.
Carrefour's CEO, who is also expected to participate in the discussion, is supposed to present the difficulties in importing products to Israel. The law that Minister Barkat will present tomorrow is based on the existing pilot with Carrefour, which already imports to Israel according to a more lenient route. It seems that Barkat's proposal, if advanced, could make it easier to import many products into Israel and encourage competition among importers, as well as encourage the entry of new international food chains into Israel.
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