The 'Nice Guy' ImageOf Israel's Finance Minister
Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid faces the impossible task of maintaining his popularity while implementing budget cuts, writes Nadav Perry.
Thursday, April 11, was a day to remember: The office of Israel's finance minister issued an official news release. Until now, Finance Minister Yair Lapid has preferred addressing the public through his Facebook page, granting not a single media interview in the three months that have elapsed since the January elections.
The news release, issued to the financial media, announced a decision to come down hard on the rich: Taxes will be raised on luxury homes, cigars, yachts, cars and other top-tier toys. On one of his last Facebook posts, Lapid compared the task he faces, covering the national deficit, to that of an average family with a massive overdraft at the bank. Well, if we continue with this analogy, then the idea of raising taxes on luxury items contributes to covering the national deficit about as much as cutting the budget for matches would help reduce the average family’s overdraft. Do the math. The measures Lapid is trumpeting are worth about NIS 300 million [$83 million] to the state treasury, while the overall deficit exceeds NIS 40 billion [$11 billion].
A few hours after the manipulative announcement issued by Lapid, the broader picture began to emerge. It thus appears that it is not only the rich who will take a hit, everyone will pay more: The value added tax will increase, income taxes will be raised, and child allowances will take a significant hit. So, why, when it finally decides to turn to the media, does the finance minister’s office choose to present a partial and misleading picture? It's clear. Everything derives from the overriding task the finance minister has set for himself — to maintain his popularity while implementing harsh measures and making cuts.
Lapid does not want to be another [Minister of International Relations] Yuval Steinitz, his predecessor, who became a puppet of the treasury officials of his own volition, and in so doing completely lost the public’s confidence. He also does not want to become Ronny Bar-On, [Minister for Regional Development] Silvan Shalom or [Prime Minister] Benjamin Netanyahu, whose terms as finance minister lost them precious public opinion points. Lapid wants to be prime minister. To do that, he needs to set a precedent and prove that one can simultaneously be a finance minister as well as a popular figure.
