Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich "exploded" today (Monday), at a meeting of the "Religious Zionism" faction, at the professional echelon in the Ministry of Finance because of the opinion against the "Basic Law on Torah Study.".
The minister stated, in response to a question from 'Kan News', that the opinion is "below professional level.".
Smotrich added that he read the opinion, and found it "fictitious, amateurish and completely unprofessional." He emphasized: "It's sad that people in my office signed on to such nonsense.".
Smotrich further noted that the Finance Ministry's legal advisor signed the opinion behind his back: "To put a logo of a legal office, sign at the bottom as a lawyer and think that this turned it into a legal opinion - shame and disgrace.".
Regarding the content of the 'Basic Law on Torah Study', he said: "You may not like what is written in the law, but it is not related to money, and it is not related to the question of whether the Haredim should go to work or not. It does not grant exemption from either the army or core studies.".
The professional echelon in the ministry formulated a position according to which the law will increase the burden on the public served and on the taxpayer - and presented a dire prediction: "There will be no escape from raising taxes by 16 percent.".
