Yair Lapid. Credit: Yesh Atid/Wikimedia Commons.

Times of Israel – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Yair Lapid are set to meet one-on-one on Sunday with the goal of finalizing the 2015 budget proposal, which is likely to include an additional 6 billion shekels (some $1.7 billion) in defense spending.

Yesh Atid party chief Lapid, who has been sparring with Netanyahu over the terms for weeks, said Saturday that Israel was now able to produce a budget that, even after a year that saw the longest military conflict in 30 years (against Hamas), would not harm social welfare programs, “will not include new taxes,” and will feature clauses to improve education and housing availability.

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