The Progressive Party has decided to join the government coalition, the party announced here today. The decision was adopted by the party central council last night, when it was also decided to offer the name of Dr. Pinchas Rosen and Dr. Herbert Foerder as condidates for Ministerial posts.
Last night Agudas Labor leaders Benjamin Mintz and Rabbi Kalman Kahane called on Premier David Ben Gurion and completed arrangements for the religious party’s re-entering the coalition. The announcement of this action is expected to come after the Chanukah festival.
Political circles here believe that Dr. Foerder will be named Minister of Commerce and Industry and that Dr. Rosen will be a member of the Cabinet without portfolio, while Mr. Mintz will be Minister of Welfare and Rabbi Kahane will be Deputy Minister of Education.
A Poale Agudah spokesman today said that the prime reason for his party’s return to the Cabinet was to insure that the coalition did not merge the various educational systems into one before the Spring of 1955, as has been promised. He said the party believes that with the Progressives in the Cabinet and the Agudah Laborites out there might be a danger of earlier amalgamation of educational systems.
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