The cabinet today is due to authorize the continuation of stipends to haredi (ultra-orthodox) yeshiva students, for at least five more years, even through the High Court of Justice ruled that the stipends because they are discriminatory.
Several ministers spoke out against the measure at the start of the cabinet meeting. "This is a cowardly decision without an iota of leadership," said Minister of Minority Affairs Avishai Braverman.
Minister of Finance Yuval Steinitz countered by wondering why all measures related to the haredim were met with "hysteria", adding that the agreement was "fair".
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, "We have here a gradual solution that is not easy for the haredim either. This is a first step. Many have talked, but we're the first to act."
Under the revised plan, income support payments paid to haredi yeshiva students will end after five years, and the number of stipends will be limited. Prime Minister's Office director general Eyal Gabai, who chaired the committee that submitted the recommendations, said that the decision will help put yeshiva students to work.
However, in practice, no stipend to any haredi yeshiva student will be halted. The countdown for the cutoff date will only begin when the cabinet decision is taken, which means that the stipends will only begin to end in 2015. 29-year old haredi yeshiva students, who account for over 80% of stipend recipients, will continue to receive them, irrespective of their age.
Six months ago, the High Court of Justice ruled that the stipends for haredi yeshiva students were illegal because they were unequal. The Ministry of Education pays the NIS 1,040 monthly stipend to 11,000 married yeshiva students with at least three children and whose monthly income, including their wives, does not exceed NIS 1,200. The High Court of Justice ruled that the government must immediately cease paying the stipends on January 1, 2011.
The main change in the new stipends plan is to limit them to a preset time period.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on December 19, 2010
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