Budget vote delayed as coalition clashes with ultra-Orthodox over conscription law

In an unexpected development for the coalition, the Knesset plenum vote scheduled for Monday on the first reading of the state budget has been postponed until Wednesday. In response to the crisis, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is convening an urgent meeting with MK Aryeh Deri, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and MK Moshe Gafni.

The delay follows a dispute with the United Torah Judaism faction, which requested consultations with the Knesset’s legal counsel over the conscription law. Ultra-Orthodox parties had expected agreements to be reached ahead of the final discussion on the legislation, scheduled for Tuesday, which would have enabled them to support the budget.

Over the weekend, ultra-Orthodox representatives held several meetings with the legal adviser of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and the Knesset’s legal adviser. The meetings ended without agreement, leaving ultra-Orthodox leaders concerned that no compromise will be reached on the draft law’s wording. If Tuesday’s discussion in the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee fails to produce progress, coalition sources warn of a political crisis that could lead to early elections if the budget is not approved by Wednesday.

Several disputed clauses in the draft law have fueled tensions between the ultra-Orthodox parties and the coalition. These include granting authority to a non-political committee to reduce draft targets if the IDF fails to meet conditions for integrating Haredim into designated units, the legal counsel’s demand that the law be passed as a temporary provision rather than permanent legislation, a requirement for individual pardons instead of a general amnesty for approximately 80,000 draft evaders, and disagreements over the legal definition of who is consideredultra-Orthodox.

Earlier this month, the Council of Hasidic Torah Sages formally opposed the draft law, stating, “The Council expresses its deep concern and pain over the campaign of harassment against Torah scholars by various authorities, over the harm caused to them and to their rights, and over their defamation and humiliation publicly simply for being Torah scholars, something that is becoming increasingly serious.”

Opposition leader Yair Lapid welcomed the postponement, saying, “The reason the budget is not being put to a vote today is that the ultra-Orthodox realized that the Draft Evasion Law will not pass. We will not allow it to pass.”

The first reading vote on the budget had originally been scheduled for last week, before being postponed to Monday and now again to Wednesday. Knesset legal adviser Sagit Afek has told lawmakers that at least two months are required from the time the budget is formally submitted to the Knesset until final approval.