Jerusalem, Sept 16: The Israeli government wrapped up a tough spending plan for fiscal 2004 in the early hours today, approving measures that would cut 2.2 billion dollars in outlays, including 800 million dollars from the defence budget, the Finance Ministry said. Total spending in the budget, which is expected to be adopted by the Knesset, or Parliament, at the end of December, comes to 59.33 billion dollars.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had vetoed moves by Finance Minister Benjamin Natanyahu to slash the defence budget by as much as 1.3 billion dollars in the face of severe opposition from Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz.
Netanyahu, himself a former prime minister, was reportedly furious Sharon backed Mofaz, but the Defence Minister was also unhappy at the scale of the cutbacks.
The Finance Ministry said a majority of cabinet members voted in favour of the final text, but Defence Minister Mofaz, along with Education Minister Limor Livnat and Trade and Industry Minister Ehud Olmert, plus five ministers from the minority Shinui party, voted against.
Bureau Report