During the discussion that took place today (Wednesday) in the finance committee, the director general of the Prime Minister’s Office, Yossi Sheli, said: “The decision on the salaries of ministers for years, states that the state will provide the Prime Minister with an official residence, and that the expenses of the residence outside of Jerusalem will be financed by the state.”
Shelly also said: “When I took up my position in January, I found a house to renovate but it was destroyed, it’s not a classic renovation, there is nothing, just a shell, a house to preserve. It’s been a year and a half since the government changed, we saw according to the advice of the consultants that at least two more years are needed for renovation.
The Prime Minister was offered several alternatives, and he chose to live in his private residence as his official residence. The previous model was Bennett’s model, we reached a situation where there is a law that talks about the house in Balfour that talks about procedures, and there is a hybrid situation. “.
Following this, he added: “I brought it here on my own initiative to straighten it out. After we approve, if we approve, it is subject to the procedures, whatever it was, if the Prime Minister had not chosen this alternative, he would have chosen another residence, it would not have been costs less.
We requested that our private residence be an official residence as I said, we requested an amendment until 2026, because the working assumption that by then there will be a new residence, and we will return to the normal procedure. It is a dual-use property, so we have defined that issues related to improvement will not be included in the account. It can also be completed within two years. These things are already fixed in the existing law.”
Drorit Steinmetz, from the Prime Minister’s Office, said: “In section A1, the proposal for approval by the Finance Committee actually talks about allowing the Prime Minister to use his private residence as his official residence. Since it is not possible to use Balfour, and not everyone is inside, the renovation process will take quite a long time, approx. Two years, until we protect it and adjust all the needs.”
She further added: “Section A1 speaks of the state treasury bearing the expenses of the official residence in Jerusalem and outside of it, outside of it that is another residence. The decision of the committee of ministers from 1982 already states that the state treasury will finance a residence in Jerusalem and a residence outside of it, the request that the alternative residence for Balfour be his private residence. There is no intention of massive renovations, we are not going to go up and improve the property, there is no intention of massive construction or adding floors.”
Tzachi Bowerman, head of the Prime Minister’s staff, said: “According to the original decision from 1982, the Prime Minister is entitled to an official residence in Jerusalem, and the maintenance of a private residence outside Jerusalem. Contrary to what has been said, this is not about renovating the houses, we are not going to renovate either the private residence in Caesarea or In Gaza, the whole decision talks about ongoing maintenance, the CEO will decide if it is necessary to clean once a week for two hours or four hours.”
Representatives of the Prime Minister’s Office explained that the decision states that the Prime Minister’s private residence will be used as an alternative residence for Balfour, and that prior to that, the designation of former Prime Minister Bennett’s residence as an official residence was made without an official decision.
To MK Vladimir Blayak’s question regarding the cost of maintenance, the director general of the office replied that “currently there is no number to increase, but it will be much lower than other alternatives.”
They also asked the members of the opposition whether there was a situation in which two dormitories belonging to the current Prime Minister were undergoing renovations, and they answered that no. The members of the opposition called for a discussion to be allowed in which they would ask all the questions regarding all the sections, and on the other hand, the members of the coalition replied that they wanted to text the discussion and not hold a substantive discussion.
During the debate, Knesset member Michal Shir, Knesset member Vladimir Blayak and Knesset member Ron Katz were expelled.