The Cabinet today adopted a government budget for 1956-57 totaling 850,000,000 Israeli pounds ($476,000,000), an increase of 80,000,000 Israeli pounds ($44,800,000) over the budget for the last fiscal year.
While, on the whole, the new but let provides expenditures averaging about a ten percent increase for most items, there is a proportionately higher increase for the coming year in planned expenditures for housing, education, health and social welfare. The Jewish Agency will contribute 18,000,000 Israeli pounds ($9,900,000) for services to be provided by the government for new immigrants, while the government itself will provide the Agency with 20,000,000 Israeli pounds ($11,200,000) for new housing for the new arrivals.
The budget, which will be submitted to the Israel parliament within the next two weeks was drawn, according to government sources on the assumption that the United States would resume grants in aid to this country and that a loan would be given Israel from the United States Export-Import Bank.
The new budget includes sizeable allocations for expansion of the merchant fleet, and for modernization of the Israel Airlines through the purchase of new Brittania planes. The budget does not include special defense expenditures, which will be raised through additional taxation.
An interesting figure shown in the budget is the fact that the total number of government employees is 36,194. The number of-employees will remain unchanged during the coming fiscal year.
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