The Israeli cabinet has approved Monday the budget for 2001 by a vote of 9 to 2, with three abstentions, reported Haaretz newspaper.
Prime Minister Ehud Barak said that the budget, totaling NIS 240.137 billion (approximately $60b), represented economic growth and social sensitivity, according to the paper.
The votes against the budget were cast by Minister of Science, Culture and Sport Matan Vilnai and acting Interior Minister Haim Ramon.
The abstentions came from Communications and Housing Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer, Immigrant Absorption Minister Yuli Tamir and Public Security Minister and acting Foreign Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami.
Some ministers voiced objections to the sizes of their respective budgets, but eventually supported the Finance Ministry's draft.
Haaretz added that the director-general of the Defense Ministry, Amos Yaron, and Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz were brought into the meeting so they could express their complaints about the defense budget.
Mofaz said that the military might not be able to provide the country with optimal security in the wake of the cuts in the defense budget, Haaretz noted.
Barak later told a press conference that in real terms, the defense budget for 2001 would be larger than that of 2000, but that the government had been unable to meet the demands of the defense establishment due to the needs of the economy.
"There was no other choice," Barak said, adding, "It is painful, but calculated, and it is my responsibility." During the cabinet meeting, Barak asserted, "We have extricated the economy from a deep and severe recession to intensified growth and the creation of new jobs."
He said the emphasis in the 2001 budget would be on education, infrastructure and closing social gaps.
According to the paper, the budget for 2001 is 2.57 percent larger, in real terms, than that of 2000.
Acting Interior Minister Haim Ramon blasted the budget for his ministry, saying it reflected "stagnation and a standstill." Ramon voted against the budget because Finance Minister Avraham Shochat rejected his request for a substantial increase to assist local governments, said the paper - Albawaba.com
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
