Accountant General Yali Rothenberg. (Courtesy, Finance Ministry)
The Finance Ministry’s chief accountant warned government ministries Wednesday that if a state budget is not passed or compensatory adjustments made to law, across-the-board cutbacks will be necessary, from the beginning of next year, Hebrew media reported.
In a letter to the ministry’s directors-general, Accountant General Yali Rothenberg wrote that there will be no choice but to “carry out restraint measures and tighten the guidelines regarding the approval of expenditures in government ministries.”
Cutbacks at larger ministries, such as the defense, education, welfare and health ministries, are expected to amount to hundreds of millions of shekels, according to the Ynet website, while Channel 12 news estimated that the cuts could amount to as much as 25 percent of ministries’ existing budgets.