Bennett and Lieberman promised the public that taxes would not be raised. Bennett even promised to implement what he called the 'Singapore Model', centered on massive tax cuts. However, contrary to their promises, not only are they not reducing taxes, but they are imposing one of the most onerous taxes on us - the inflation tax.
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In the past year, prices in Israel have increased by 2.51%, while housing prices have increased by 9.21%. Inflation increases our prices just as a VAT increase does, and reduces our real wages just as an income tax increase does.
Equally serious, inflation is eroding significant portions of our pension capital, which is invested through pension funds in unlinked bonds of none other than the Israeli government.
Indeed, the Israeli government is profiting enormous sums from inflation in the short term. Not only is it eroding its obligations to pension funds (as mentioned by eroding its non-index-linked bonds), but it is also reducing its deficit in the state budget at our expense.
While the taxes imposed on us by the government are indexed to the CPI, its expenses, and in particular its salary expenses, are not indexed to the CPI. The government increases the income tax brackets each year according to the rate of increase in the CPI, VAT is imposed on the nominal price that increases in price, and so is the tax on fuel, which is a percentage of the price, while revenues from land sales and real estate taxes increase in line with the increase in housing prices.
The government is therefore celebrating at our expense with tax revenues that rise with inflation, while at the same time eroding our wages and reducing its obligations towards our pensions.
It goes without saying that the economy cannot afford tax increases. The public of consumers, employees, and small businesses are shouldering an impossible burden of taxes and obligations.
The economy needs tax cuts, not tax increases. Just as you promised. But, contrary to your promises, you are raising taxes, and I haven't even said a word about the myriad of strange taxes you imposed on us in the last budget – from the tax on sugary drinks, to a carbon tax that will increase electricity prices, and to a congestion tax on entering the center of the country.
However, the inflation tax outweighs everything.
Bennett and Lieberman, inflation is a tax and it is your responsibility. Worse still, it is a tax for cowards, which did not need to undergo the proper approval of the Knesset like a VAT increase or an increase in the cost of income tax.
Do you trust that the public will not understand what you are doing to them?
