Transport Ministry Director-General Moshe Ben Zaken told the Knesset Economics Committee on Tuesday that a joint move by Transport Minister Miri Regev and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to cede centralized transport powers to local metropolitan authorities is a rare act of government self-restraint, aimed at bringing decisions closer to residents.
Transport Ministry Director-General Moshe Ben Zaken on Tuesday praised a rare act of government decentralization: a law transferring significant transportation planning and management powers from the national ministry to metropolitan local authorities. Speaking before the Knesset Economics Committee, Ben Zaken described the move, led by Transport Minister Miri Regev and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, as unusual in Israeli governance—a ministry willingly giving up centralized authority. He framed the decision as serving citizens' needs by moving decision-making as close to residents as possible. The statement, reported on Tuesday afternoon, offers a clear insight into the government's internal motivations behind the Metropolitan Authorities Bill, though no further details on the bill's passage timeline or specific powers transferred were provided in this briefing.
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