Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir addresses the Plenum at the festive sitting marking the 41st birthday of the Knesset, 1990

Knesset Speaker Dov Shilansky:

Former and Present Members of the Knesset, I have the honor to open this Knesset sitting on the subject of “The Knesset at work”.

To the best of memory, every Speaker in recent years has talked of the low number of Knesset members attending the plenum and the committees. I am looking for ways to make Members of the Knesset more active in this building, and have even consulted the chairpersons of the factions regarding this matter. Different suggestions were raised, starting with publicizing the names of those present, and ranging to providing information to those group chairpersons who ask for it. This matter is yet to be resolved and I hope that the Members of the Knesset will pay heed, as public representatives should.

The absence of Knesset members is felt especially on Wednesday afternoons. This brings us to another problem, which is an increase in urgent motions for the agenda. The Speaker and his deputies meet on Mondays and decide on five urgent motions for the agenda to be discussed on Wednesday, but many of the rejected motions are appealed before the House Committee and many are being authorized. Furthermore, unlike other parliaments, a vast number of Knesset members jump on the bandwagon, and raise similar, though slightly changed motions as well. The result is that many MKs verbally justify their motions, and hence a long debate takes place. It is interesting to note that many of those who support in lengthening the plenum sittings leave on Wednesdays before the sittings are adjourned.

The House Committee should take this into account when appeals on decisions of the Presidium are brought to it. It would be good to have them think and ask themselves, while discussing these appeals, whether they themselves stay at the Knesset and take part in these motions approved by them.

Another subject that requires the system to be looser is the framework for the debates. It is possible that there is room for change, reducing the permission to speak to a minimum, or maybe set a rotation of groups to take part in debates.

Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir and Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu plant trees at Mount Scopus, Jerusalem, on Tu Bishvat, 1990

The duplications of committee discussions are often mentioned. Is it not better that the House Committee looks into the subjects dealt by all committees and delimit them, after dozens of years of experience? And this is for clarifying and delineating, as much as possible, the matters, so that committees will not interfere with each other’s work.

We have grown accustomed, and I doubt if it is permissible, to publicize messages dealing with contents said by committee members and invitees. The committee chairpersons should pay attention to this breach.

Up to now, I have discussed matters concerning this house, and now onto Knesset-government relations.

The phenomenon of a vacant government table has become fixed, and that is unacceptable. This is not the attitude of other governments in the world towards their parliaments. I fear that the sense of security of government members, who feel they are immune to sanctions imposed by the Knesset, contributes to these unsuitable relations. The government has established a duty roster of two ministers present during days of Knesset sittings, and I congratulate the Prime Minister for this initiative, but they do not even seem to be present in the building.

Another phenomenon is that ministers frequently ask us to schedule their appearances on Wednesdays at an earlier time. These requests are awkward, as we do not have the ability to schedule several ministers at the same time.

One of the iron-clad rules in parliaments is that the Speaker is not interrupted. We have yet instilled this behavior amongst ourselves.

Some refer to the Knesset as a rubber stamp. I warn you against using this terminology. The Knesset has proven in its actions that it is not so. The Galilee Law is not the sole example. Besides the Galilee Law, recently approved, the Knesset passed on to the committees other bills that were not supported by the government. At times it may be possible to authorize the Knesset to amend articles in the state budget, without changing its overall sum, and also change the procedure of debate over the budget by dividing it among the committees or in any other manner.

Before I finish, I would like to thank the employees of the Knesset and the Knesset Guard, who faithfully execute their work behind the scenes and through it we can fulfill our job properly. I would also like to thank the parliamentary reporters who accompany this house’s work.

Members of the Knesset, distinguished guests, at 18:00 you are invited to the ceremony of the Speaker of the Knesset’s Prize for Quality of Life, which has become a part of the Knesset birthday celebrations. Afterwards you are all invited for a get-together.

Happy holiday.