Debate on the merits of adopting a written Constitution at this time will be interrupted for a fortnight to give priority to consideration of the national budget and the education issue, it was announced in the Knesset today. Speaker Joseph Sprinzak said that budget estimates must reach the Parliamentary Finance Committee before the end of this month if the debate on the budget is to end by March 31, when the Parliament will adjourn for a full month.
Earlier this week, Premier David Ben Gurion urged the Knesset not to press for adoption of a Constitution at this time, since the “law already laid down in Israel’s Declaration of Independence of May 14, 1948, assures the civil, political and religious rights and freedoms of every citizen without distinction as to race, creed or sex.”
The Parliamentary Finance Committee today asked the Comptroller General to begin an investigation of the number of persons employed in government offices with a view to reducing the government payroll. The Comptroller was also instructed to set a time limit for all offices to answer applications or correspondence from the public.
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