Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told "Bloomberg" that his ambition is to see Israel's economy overtake France and the UK in terms of per capita income. He said, “There’s no reason why we can’t eventually surpass Britain and France in GDP per capita. We have to keep growing at 5%.”
"Bloomberg" observed that "it is the push for growth that drives Netanyahu's policies, even as he heads to Washington next week for talks on Iran."
"Bloomberg" continued, "Netanyahu began selling state assets and loosening labor laws as finance minister from 2003 to 2005, Israel's economy has boomed, growing at an average 4.2 percent each year. The expansion will help ensure Israel's survival, as an "island of democracy that is surrounded by a sea of troubles" in the Middle East, the 62- year-old premier told U.S. Jewish leaders at a Feb. 19 conference in Jerusalem."
"If we are to address our defense needs that we are being challenged with, we have to continue this growth," Netanyahu said at the meeting. "It is not a question of living standard. It's a question of national security."
"Bloomberg" added, "As part of his plan to spur growth, Netanyahu has set up a committee to boost competition, introduced reforms to lower the cost of living after social protests, passed a law to free up public land for private development, maintained fiscal discipline, and introduced a two-year budget, a move praised by the IMF."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 1, 2012
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2012