Following a petition submitted by the Movement for Freedom of Information, the Prime Minister’s Office was ordered to reveal receipts issued by the prime minister’s three residences—both from the Prime Minister’s Official Residence in Jerusalem and from Netanyahu’s two private residences in Jerusalem and Caesarea. Together, the receipts issued ovr 2014 amount to a little under 2 million shekels (over $500, 000).
This is the first time the PMO has submitted the actual receipts for public review. Despite agreeing to transfer all receipts besides those relating to communications and infrastructure services, the PMO continues to withhold 175 of its issued receipts amounting to roughly half a million shekels. Netanyahu claims that revealing the remaining receipts would encroach upon his family’s privacy.
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Some of the services and items listed in these receipts stand out more than others. One such example is the spending of some NIS 26, 000 ($6.750) for psychological evaluations performed on those working at the prime minister’s various residences. Another expense discovered amounted to NIS 691, 000 ($179.400) spent on cleaning all three residences – totalling over NIS 1, 800 ($467.4) per day in 2014.
The PMO responded to the release stating, “Nothing new has been revealed here. The data in these receipts was released a year ago, and all the payments included in them were made in accordance with the relevant authorities and under the same rules that have always applied to Israeli prime ministers. This attempt to set a different standard for Netanyahu is inherently wrong.”
The Likud party also issued a statement, belittling the request itself. “‘The movement for freedom to rummage through Netanyahu’s personal affairs’ is still pouring over every receipt for a loaf of bread or spreadable cheese in a sick effort to make jibes at Prime Minister Netanyahu.”
