P.M Netanyahu and Finance Minister Katz cancel NIS 1.45 billion in taxes and purchase taxes

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Israel Katz have decided to permanently cancel NIS 1.45 billion in taxes and purchase taxes on products, in addition to concluding the granting of 35 days of unemployment eligibility for eligible persons.
As part of the decision, the tariffs and shopping taxes on the following products are regularly eliminated: Mobile phones - 15%, Footwear - 12%, Apparel and textiles - 6%, Entertainment electronics (TVs, speakers, monitors, converters, projectors, amplifiers, microphones, headphones, smart cards) , Radios and more) - 15% -30%, home appliances from 6% -12%, lamps and chandeliers - from 12% to 8%, toys and games - 12%, cosmetics - 12%, baby products - 12 %.
The count of unemployment days will be calculated from 19.4.20 and not 15.3.20. Therefore, the period of unemployment will not include the period during which significant economic restrictions were imposed on the economy due to the Corona crisis.
Over 40% of those who lost their jobs because of the Corona crisis are under 34. The decision provides a solution for unemployed persons under the age of 34 whose eligibility for unemployment benefits is already over. This is after the Treasury has already extended the eligibility days of the month, but many still do not return to work and remain without support or livelihood.
According to Finance Minister Israel Katz: "Alongside the big program that we are leading and embarking on to stimulate the return of one million unemployed to work, we have also been looking for the same things that will make it easier for the public in the meantime. The most important thing, as the Prime Minister said, is to extend the unemployment benefit to young people, to give each additional month at a time when the economy is closed, we will add this month to them, so that as soon as the unemployment benefit is over, they will receive another month. thousands of people".
The Employment Service figures show that since the easing of the closure of the economy began on 19.4.2020, the Employment Service received 300,526 reports of returning to work, while 111,682 new job seekers were registered.
At the same time, the government has decided to permanently eliminate tariffs and purchasing taxes on a wide range of products, including cell phones, clothing and footwear, baby products, electronics, electrical appliances and more - the total volume of customs and purchase taxes is NIS 1.45 billion a year.
This is the fixing of the situation that has been in place since 2018, which until now was temporarily valid as part of an hourly order, as part of the "Net Family" economic plan of former Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, which aimed to ease the cost of living in Israel. The time order was set to expire at the end of June and importers threatened that if the order was not extended the product prices would rise. Now Netanyahu and Katz have decided to fix the tariff cancellation.
The decision to permanently cancel tariffs was made after Netanyahu and Katz presented an effectiveness test, which showed that the temporary abolition of tariffs and purchasing taxes resulted in a significant drop in consumer product prices over time, even compared to trends in other countries.
The prime minister and the finance minister instructed to continue periodically examining the level of prices in these markets, to ensure that the reduction continues to roll out to consumers.