Kohelet Policy Forum and the Movement for Quality of Government sent an urgent letter to Coalition Chairman Ofir Katz on Wednesday, calling to bring the Metropolitan Authorities Law to the Knesset plenum agenda. 'It's hard to believe that such a significant reform could be stopped at the last moment due to political considerations,' the letter states, according to N12 journalist Yuval Sadeh.
Kohelet Policy Forum and the Movement for Quality of Government, two prominent Israeli advocacy groups, sent an urgent letter Wednesday afternoon to Coalition Chairman Ofir Katz, urging him to bring the Metropolitan Authorities Law to the Knesset plenum for a vote. The groups warned that the reform — which would create metropolitan transport authorities to streamline public transit — is at risk of being derailed at the last moment by political considerations.
The letter follows a similar appeal earlier Wednesday from eight transport and environmental organizations, who wrote to Katz and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana warning that the bill is in danger of being canceled. That earlier letter was reported by N12 at 12:40.
The Metropolitan Authorities Law has faced opposition from Haredi factions concerned about potential public transport on Shabbat, though Shas MK Yitzhak Margi acknowledged Wednesday that those concerns are unfounded. The Transport and Finance ministries warned Tuesday that blocking the reform would worsen congestion and harm quality of life.
The new letter from Kohelet and the Movement for Quality of Government adds nonpartisan civil-society weight to the push for the law, which has been a priority of the Transport and Finance ministries.
2 developments
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- DevelopingMovement for Quality Government petitions High Court against new Police Internal Investigations law
- StrongTransport Ministry voluntarily transfers authority to metropolitan local governments
- StrongNetanyahu dispatches Coalition Chair Katz to craft agreed legislative package with coalition leaders
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