Arab coalition faction threatens to block legislation pushed by Interior Minister if ‘Electricity Law’ not passed as originally drafted.
Israel National News ט”ז בטבת תשפ”ב 09:18 20.12.21
The simmering coalition crisis in Israel’s government has intensified, Reshet Bet reported Monday morning, with the United Arab List (Ra’am) escalating its efforts against Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked (Yamina) in a bid to win support for its “Electricity Law”.
The UAL has pressed the Bennett government to pass the “Electricity Law”, which would link illegally built homes to Israel’s electricity infrastructure, in the bill’s original form.
But the bill met resistance from coalition partners, including Minister Shaked, who worked to redraft the bill so as to exclude illegal Bedouin encampments from inclusion in the bill’s coverage.
MKs from the UAL, whose constituents are primarily Bedouin Arabs, balked at the changes, leading to a coalition crisis within the government.
On Monday, Reshet Bet reported that MK Waleed Taha is blocking legislation pushed by Shaked aimed at developing the northern city of Harish.
Taha, who chairs the Knesset’s Interior Affairs Committee, has delayed the bill for weeks, after it receive preliminary approval from the Knesset.
“There is no trust in Shaked,” Taha said last month. “That is the root of the problem. Shaked is intentionally working against the UAL, and is trying to water down the [Electricity] Law.”
Shaked responded to the UAL’s threat not to back coalition bills, saying: “As far as I’m concerned, the coalition would be better not bringing bills to a vote because of this. I’m not prepared to give in on this issue.”