Bill proposed to prevent indicted from seeking presidency
By GIL HOFFMANPrime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu walking through the Knesset, wearing a mask amid the coronavirus pandemic(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government will face its first test since his criminal trial began on Sunday when the Knesset votes on Wednesday on the so-called Expanded Norwegian Law.The bill, which was postponed a week ago, would enable five ministers in Blue and White and two in other coalition parties to quit the Knesset and be replaced by the next candidates on each party’s list. If the ministers quit the cabinet, they could return to the Knesset at the expense of the new MKs.A separate bill would give new MKs in factions that have split 24 hours to decide which one to join. The bill could allow candidates of Yesh Atid and Telem, which are in the opposition, to instead join Blue and White in the coalition.The bill was set to pass a week ago but was delayed because Knesset committees had not been formed yet and due to disputes between Netanyahu and Blue and White leader Benny Gantz that have since been resolved.The final makeup of Knesset committees is set to be voted on in the Knesset plenum on Wednesday ahead of the vote on the Expanded Norwegian Law. The Knesset was waiting for the end of Eid al-Fitr, the festival ending the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, to appoint the committees.The main problem that has delayed their formation is that the opposition has been divided. Yisrael Beytenu and Yamina have agreed to rotate in the chairmanship of a committee to help solve the problem.Yesh Atid chairman Yair Lapid will officially receive the title of opposition leader on Wednesday when Knesset Speaker Yariv Levin makes an official announcement in the Knesset plenum.Lapid and Yisrael Beytenu MKs co-sponsored a bill that would prohibit anyone indicted from running for president. It remains to be seen whether the bill would prevent Netanyahu from running for president when Reuven Rivlin’s term ends in July 2021.“It cannot be that after getting indicted, someone can think they can run to the President’s Residence to escape justice,” Lapid told Army Radio.Yisrael Beytenu MK Yulia Malinovsky, who proposed the bill, said it was not connected to Netanyahu, who has never said he is running for president.
In another controversial bill, Yamina announced it would propose the so-called French bill, which would prevent a sitting prime minister from being investigated. MK Matan Kahane, who proposed the bill, said it was needed for the government to function.The bill could embarrass the Likud, which will not be able to vote for it due to disagreements with Blue and White.“Gantz should support it because who knows what will happen with his Fifth Dimension case,” Kahane said. “It won’t be retroactive and won’t apply to Netanyahu’s current cases.”
