Knesset Finance Committee chairman MK Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism) has decided to propose a private bill that would prevent the Bank of Israel Monetary Committee from raising interest rates in order to help homeowners with mortgages. Gafni decided to move forward with the bill even though it contravenes the position of the cabinet and the coalition agreement with the Likud. The Likud issued a statement, "This won't happen. The independence of the Bank of Israel won't be harmed and interest rate decisions are exclusively by the Governor." RELATED ARTICLES Foreign Minister wants to curb Bank of Israel independence Gafni's bill comes following a stormy week on the issue of the independence of the Bank of Israel after a tweet by Minister of Foreign Affairs Eli Cohen, calling on Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich to prevent further interest rate hikes. The tweet resulted in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Smotrich issuing statements that they would not compromise the independence of the central bank. So it is likely that Netanyahu and Smotrich will make every effort to prevent the approval of Gafni's bill. Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on February 27, 2023. © Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2023.
