Sources inform “Globes” that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is considering appointing Minister of Foreign Affairs Benjamin Netanyahu as Minister of Finance. Netanyahu has reportedly rejected the idea in talks with his aides.
Netanyahu said, “It’s illogical for me to accept the post, since I’d clearly be doomed to failure.” He told his aides that the job of minister of finance in general, and in Israel’s current situation in particular, cannot be carried out without the full backing of the prime minister and his determination to implement necessary economic measures and not surrender to various pressure groups.
As he has stated in the past and reiterated since the Likud’s election victory, Netanyahu believes that a deep budget cut is the wrong solution for a shrinking economy. He thinks one of the many recovery measures should be heavy investment, especially in infrastructures, which would create new jobs, reduce unemployment and restore stability.
Netanyahu says that most these investments should be from the private sector. However, due to the slump, uncertainty and investors’ fears, the government should provide incentives and support the investment from state funds.
Netanyahu told his aides that during Silvan Shalom’s term as minister of finance, Sharon frequently succumbed to political pressure groups, and so-called “social” groups, thereby sabotaging Ministry of Finance plans. These actions were taken without any discussions about their propriety.
Netanyahu said economic policy could not be managed in this way, especially during a crisis. Therefore, under these circumstances, he told his aides, “I will not accept a job whose pitfalls are known in advance.”
Netanyahu, who has a degree in business from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), served as acting minister of finance during his final few months as prime minister. Before embarking on his political career, and after losing the 1999 elections, Netanyahu worked in business.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on February 6, 2003