Law of Return: Coalition to ensure they hold majority on Immigration Committee

The Likud announced on Monday that the coalition will ensure that it has a majority in the Knesset Committee for Immigration, Absorption and Diaspora Affairs, indicating its seriousness of intention in pushing through reforms on this issue.

According to a proposal put forward by Ministerial Liaison to the Knesset, MK Yoav Kisch, and Knesset Arrangement Committee chairman and coalition whip, Likud MK Ofir Katz, the 15-member committee that will likely debate any future changes to the Law of Return will be led by a member of Yisrael Beytenu for the first half of the Knesset's tenure, and a member of Labor in the second half – but comprised of eight members of the coalition versus seven members of the opposition.

This differs from the previous Knesset, in which the opposition was offered both to lead the committee and to have a three-person majority.

Every bill in Israeli legislature debated and amended in one of the committees

Every bill in the Israeli legislature is debated and amended in one of the committees. The committee head controls the pace of the discussions, but cannot veto laws from passing. The coalition's majority thus enables the committee to pass any law that comes its way, including controversial changes to the Law of Return such as the cancellation of the Grandchild Clause, which would bar people who have a Jewish grandparent but are not Jewish according to Jewish law from making Aliyah.

Out of the 15 permanent Knesset committees, the opposition was offered to lead four of them: The State Control Committee, the Committee on the Status of Women and Gender Equality, the Science and Technology Committee and the aforementioned Committee for Immigration, Absorption and Diaspora Affairs.

The makeup of the committees was presented on Monday in the Knesset Arrangements Committee and will be voted on later this week.