Justice Minister Shaked
Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg
Justice minister to propose bill to limit PM's term and defer indictments
Ayelet Shaked is to submit a bill to limit a PM's term to eight consecutive years and freeze indictments for certain white collar crimes until his term's completion; the bill would only take place after Netanyahu leaves office.
Minister of Justice Ayelet Shaked intends to submit a revolutionary bill to limit the amount of time that a person can serve consecutively as prime minister to eight years.
According to the proposed bill, a prime minister who has served more than eight consecutive years would be prohibited from putting himself forward for the position again.
During those years, any indictment against a prime minister for white collar crimes carrying penalties of up to three years would be frozen until the prime minister exited office. Nevertheless, all investigative procedures for the case, without any exception whatsoever, would be employed during his service. The bill would not take effect until the current prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, left office.
The current prime minister would be exempt from the bill. (Photo: Motti Kimchi)
Shaked's bill would not freeze indictments for crimes that carry sentences greater than three years. It seeks to ensure regime stability and continuous governance.
The minister commented, "An eight-year term permits the prime minister a lot of time to effect real changes and implement his policies. On the other hand, the continuation of a term beyond that amount of time doesn't strengthen the health of democracy. The goal of the law: to ensure integrity alongside the ability to govern."
On Sunday, the government is expected to reject a bill proposed by MK David "Dudi" Amsalem (Likud) that would forbid investigating the current prime minister. Amsalem serves as the chairman of the Internal Affairs and Environment Committee, which is responsible for the Knesset's police oversight.
Some in the opposition have claimed that Amsalem is taking advantage of his position to discourage investigators. Amsalem, for his part, said that this is a principles move that is not intended to eliminate the investigation against Netanyahu, so he added an article to the bill stating that it would not affect investigations that will have begun before the bill's entering into law.
