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What happened: Likud MK Yariv Levin was yesterday elected as speaker of the Knesset, allowing the incoming coalition to take control of the legislative agenda.

• Levin is a close confidant of designated prime minister Netanyahu and has been leading the coalition negotiations on behalf of Likud. His candidacy received the support of all 64 MKs of the right-wing bloc.
• Following his election the Knesset began a marathon session to pass four significant pieces of legislation, required before the new government can be sworn in:
  • The first relates to the expansion of powers over the police for designated public security minister Itamar Ben Gvir. Among the expanded powers, he wants more direct control over police operations and oversight of the police commissioner.
  • Secondly, an amendment to Basic Law: Government, to allow Shas leader Aryeh Deri to serve as minister (despite being convicted last year on tax offences). The new amendment will make a distinction between a suspended prison service (that Deri received last year) and serving prison time (that happened to Deri in the past).
  • The third change is also to the Basic Law: Government. It will move control over the Civil Administration (in the West Bank) and the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories from the ministry of defence to the leader of the Religious Zionist Party Bezalel Smotrich.
  • The fourth bill will repeal the clause in the Knesset law that allows four MKs to splinter off from an existing faction. This clause was changed by the previous government to try (unsuccessfully) to facilitate a split within the Likud. The repeal reverts to the previous situation that requires one-third of a party to split in order to form its own faction.
• Outgoing Public Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev (Labour) issued a special statement regarding the bill to amend the Police Ordinance: “The proposal is unhinged, it will subject the police completely to the politicians’ control, turning the police into a puppet on a string. This will damage operational activity, not only investigations. The minister will be able to order ten police cars to be deployed to a certain place even if the commissioner, in keeping with his professional opinion, deems that unnecessary.”
• The incumbent minister Ben Gvir retorted, “Bar-Lev, the biggest failure of a public security minister, should have given up the keys a long time ago and stayed at home.”
• The necessity to pass these laws ahead of swearing in a new government attests to an overall lack of trust and suspicion among the coalition partners.
• In a lighter moment, the Knesset plenary was briefly interrupted last night with some MKs watching the world cup semi-final on their phones and cheering Lionel Messi’s goal for Argentina.

Ultra-orthodox demands: In addition to the coalition agreement on portfolios and legislation Channel 12 News revealed a slew of demands that have reportedly been agreed between Likud and United Torah Judaism (UTJ). However, according to the Likud not all these demands will be met.

• Among the issues:
  • Stopping the production of electricity on the Sabbath.
  • Adding a representative of the Chief Rabbinate to all committees that decide on government work permits on the Sabbath.
  • Adding NIS 100 million (around £24m) in Education Ministry funding for Ultra-orthodox culture.
  • Initiating affirmative action to add Ultra-orthodox candidates to the board of directors of government companies.
  • Increasing the number of gender-separated beaches, proportionate to the size of the ultra-Orthodox population.
  • Government funding for the correct disposal of damaged holy documents containing God’s name, (according to Jewish law they must not be thrown away but buried).
  • Expanding Bible and Talmud studies in secular schools.
  • Establishing a government-funded hotline that will provide answers for questions related to Jewish religious law.
  • Allowing the heads of hospitals to prohibit unleavened bread being brought into hospitals during Passover.
  • Ensuring any government service now provided via the internet will also be available by phone operators or in person.
  • A review (with a view to closing) of the Diaspora Affairs Ministry’s department that deals with Reform Judaism.
  • Cancelling the outgoing governments reforms to the ‘kosher phone’ (non-smart phone) market.

• Incoming Prime Minister Netanyahu related to the report from the Knesset plenum yesterday saying, “There is and will be electricity on Sabbath, there are and will be beaches for everyone. We will maintain the status quo, everybody will live according to their own beliefs.” He added that the state will not be governed according to Jewish Law. Insisting, “There will be a state here that will take care of all the citizens of Israel without exception. We were chosen to lead in our own way, the way of the national right and the way of the liberal right and we will do so.”
• Outgoing Prime Minister Lapid responded saying, “The UTJ-Likud agreement is a disgraceful surrender agreement….If they think we’re going to pay taxes, go to the army, bankroll people who don’t work and then for them to tell us to lead our lives, I have news for them: We won’t allow Israel to become a benighted country. Netanyahu is weak and is selling our freedom for his own freedom.”

Looking ahead: Later today the police commissioner will appear in front of a special Knesset committee and give his opinion on the proposed changes.

• The appointment of Levin as speaker is a temporary move for the next couple of weeks to facilitate the passing of those four pieces of legislation before the new government is sworn in. At the second stage a permanent speaker will be elected and Levin is expected to be the next minister of justice.
• The plan is for these bills to pass their second and third readings by next week, to then allow the new government to be announced ahead of the December 21 deadline.
• After informing the president, Netanyahu will have an additional seven days to formally swear-in the new government.