A month-long coronavirus lockdown will deal the Israeli economy a blow to the tune of between 15 and 20 billion shekels ($4.3-$5.7 billion), the Finance Ministry said over the weekend.
The government is slated to vote on the measure later on Sunday. Finance Minister Israel Katz has said he will vote against the measure.
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A senior ministry official stressed that the estimate did not include compensation for businesses that are likely to go under, and unemployment benefits the state will have to pay tens if not hundreds of thousands of Israelis who will again be let go or placed on unpaid leave.
The overall economic impact of a lockdown during the High Holidays is expected to be particularly serious as this year many of them fall on weekends, meaning they would have had minimal impact on economic activity.
If the lockdown is extended beyond the holidays, it could cost the stat another NIS 6 billion ($1.7 billion) a week.
The Treasury prefers instating a policy of increased enforcement in accordance with Coronavirus commissioner Professor Ronni Gamzu's "stoplight system," by which only areas classified as "red" over high morbidity would have to shutter businesses.
The ministry also supports keeping daycares and elementary schools open for first-fourth graders, to allow parents to continue working.
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