Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the following remarks this morning at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting (English captions available):

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the weekly Cabinet meeting:
Iran has violated its solemn promise under the UN Security Council not to enrich uranium beyond a certain level.

The enrichment of uranium is made for one reason and one reason only: It’s for the creation of atomic bombs.

The leaders of the P5+1 promised and committed themselves to snap back sanctions the minute Iran did that. It just did. Where are you?

Video: Omer Miron, GPO

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the following remarks this morning at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting (English captions available):

“When Ora Namir was a government minister in 1996, when I was first elected Prime Minister, she was our ambassador to China. I remember her well. I remember going to China and meeting with the then president, Jiang Zemin, who told me: ‘See what a good ambassador you have.’ This is no small thing in China.

I remember how the Chinese administration spoke about our ambassador, Ora Namir. I speak about our ambassador, minister and public figure Ora Namir. I did not always agree with everything she said, to put it mildly, but I very much appreciated her work on these matters and others, and her commitment to the State of Israel. May her memory be blessed.

Regarding regulation and the cost of living, over-regulation raises the cost of living. When you cannot freely import cornflakes, you use local cornflakes, which are more expensive. When you reduce regulation, you lower costs and in the end, this affects consumers’ pockets.

The OECD measures us and we see the following: In 2013, out of all the OECD countries, we were almost in last place, meaning that we were over-regulated. Next to us and ahead of us, less good than us – was Turkey. I established and chair a ministerial committee to cut regulation and bureaucracy. I chair the ministerial committee on those of Ethiopian origin, the ministerial committee on national security, the Security Cabinet, and a few other committees. Five years have passed and the OECD issued a new report a few days ago. We were almost last and now we have jumped 16 places. This is unheard of. In 2018, we jumped to 18th place and are alongside Finland.

Now, I am not satisfied with this. I want another jump forward. I want to be above the average; in the middle is not a good place. I want to be one of the least bureaucratic countries, least regulated countries, in the world, because this means money in consumers’ pockets. Last year, the activity that we undertook saved consumers and the State of Israel NIS 1.5 billion. Throughout this period, this jump has saved over NIS 4 billion. We will continue on this path. Today we will be briefed on reducing regulation. This is welcome activity, out of the public eye, but felt in the pocket.

About daycare centers. I also saw the harsh and upsetting pictures from the daycare centers; it is clear that a complete change is needed. It is on the way. Our colleague, Minister Yifat Shasha-Biton has submitted two laws that will take effect in September. They will bring about proper and necessary oversight, including cameras in the centers.

I will ask the Social Welfare Minister and the Education Minister to see what else we can do to ensure that these shocking cases do not recur. There is one thing we cannot do: We cannot set fire to the daycare provider’s house. This cannot be done. This is inconceivable. We are not prepared to accept violence, not here and not regarding our Ethiopian brothers and sisters. We will not allow the country to sink into anarchy. Protest is legitimate, but violence never is.

Video: GPO