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Courthouses Behaving Irresponsibly
During a speech last night, Finance Minister Steinitz slammed the courthouses in Israel saying that they behave irresponsibly and harm the economy of the state. "They don't understand the difference between 30 million and 30 billion", he said
Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz criticized the Israeli courthouses during a speech yesterday, specifically the High Court, stating that while all other government offices are careful not to spend beyond the budget – judges in courthouses do not take the state's economy into consideration at all and tend to make financially irresponsible decisions.
Steinmetz spoke at the 2009 Israel Business Conference in Tel Aviv yesterday when he sharply criticized the courthouses in Israel. Steinitz did not mention any specific judges, but criticized the courthouses as a whole, claiming that they are harming the state's economy.
"It may not be deliberately", said Steinitz, "but the courthouses are harming the economy and the financial agenda of the State of Israel. Although I deeply appreciate the courthouses, I have no choice but to express my dissatisfaction of their behavior, especially that of the High Court", he said.
"The Israeli government, which is the highest authority in Israel and has the right to constitute laws, has limited itself due to the relatively simple ways of harming the economy of the State. Today, every law that necessitates funding over 5 million NIS – requires a majority of 50 MKs. The courthouses, however, have the right to make decisions involving tens of thousands of NIS with the pounding of the gavel. The judges are behaving irresponsibly – they do not have the responsibility to maintain a stable economy and are also not the ones who will provide the funds", Steinitz said.
"Judges routinely issue rulings that have grave financial repercussions, involving several million – or even billion – shekels. I have great respect for the judges, however it seems to me that they do not differentiate between 30 million and 30 billion, and that is highly questionable. Regarding defense issues, there is much sensitivity, however in the financial filed there is no responsibility, no consideration and no limits", he continued.
Steinitz proceeded to give examples of courthouses' irresponsible decisions that cost the Israeli economy a fortune, or would have had they been implemented.
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