The Knesset, Israel’s Parliament, defeated tonight four non-confidence motions criticizing the Government’s new economic policy. The policy was initiated by the devaluation of the Israel pound last February. The vote against the motions was 55-47.
The motions, proposed by Herut, the Liberals, Mapam and the Communists, demanded the resignation of the Government over the “failure” of the latter’s economic program. The Agudat Israel faction supported the non-confidence motions.
Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion, who replied to the motions on behalf of the Government, ridiculed the opposition for failing to propose an alternative to the Government they sought to depose. None of the parties which submitted motions could take on the task of forming a new Government, the Premier challenged, adding that it was questionable whether they would even agree to sit in the same Cabinet together.
Mr. Ben-Gurion also asserted that the motions were premature, since Finance Minister Levi Eshkol was scheduled to present the new economic policy to the Knesset tomorrow.
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