Avraham Shochat
Encyclopedia
Avraham Shochat is a former Israel
i politician who twice served as Minister of Finance.
during the Mandate era. After his national service
, in which he served as a corporal in the Nahal
paratroopers, he attended the Technion, where he gained a BSc in Civil engineering, also being elected chairman of the university's Student Union during his studies.
He moved to the Negev
and was one of the founders of the city of Arad in 1962. He worked as branch director of Solel Boneh in Arad and the Dead Sea
area and was a member of the Board of Directors of Israel Aircraft Industries
and Negev Phosphates.
. In addition to his mayoral duties he was also deputy chairman of the Union of Local Authorities, chairman of the Development Towns Committee of the Union of Local Authorities.
In the 1984 Knesset elections
he was on the Alignment
's Knesset list, but failed to win a seat. However, when Aharon Harel
resigned from the Knesset in May 1988, Shochat replaced him. He retained his seat in elections in November that year, and was became chairman of the Finance Committee and the Economic Affairs Committee. After being re-elected in 1992 (by which time the Alignment had become the Labour Party), he was appointed Minister of Finance by Yitzhak Rabin
. Although he was re-elected again in 1996, the opposition Likud
won the election and Shochat lost his ministerial position.
Following victory for Ehud Barak
and One Israel
(an alliance of Labour, Meimad
and Gesher) in 1999, Shochat was once again appointed Minister of Finance. In October 2000 he was also made Minister of National Infrastructure
replacing Eliyahu Swisa after Shas
left Barak's coalition. After Ariel Sharon
won special elections for Prime Minister in 2001, Shochat left the cabinet. In the 2003 elections he also lost his Knesset seat.
After leaving the Knesset, Shochat was commissioned to produce a report on tuition fees for Israeli university students. His report, published in July 2007, recommended raising fees for Bachelor's degree
s by 70% and increasing government funding for higher education by NIS 1.5 billion.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i politician who twice served as Minister of Finance.
Background
Shochat was born in Tel AvivTel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
during the Mandate era. After his national service
National service
National service is a common name for mandatory government service programmes . The term became common British usage during and for some years following the Second World War. Many young people spent one or more years in such programmes...
, in which he served as a corporal in the Nahal
Nahal
Nahal is an Israel Defense Forces infantry brigade. Historically, it refers to a program that combines military service and establishment of new agricultural settlements, often in outlying areas...
paratroopers, he attended the Technion, where he gained a BSc in Civil engineering, also being elected chairman of the university's Student Union during his studies.
He moved to the Negev
Negev
The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
and was one of the founders of the city of Arad in 1962. He worked as branch director of Solel Boneh in Arad and the Dead Sea
Dead Sea
The Dead Sea , also called the Salt Sea, is a salt lake bordering Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank to the west. Its surface and shores are below sea level, the lowest elevation on the Earth's surface. The Dead Sea is deep, the deepest hypersaline lake in the world...
area and was a member of the Board of Directors of Israel Aircraft Industries
Israel Aircraft Industries
Israel Aerospace Industries or IAI is Israel's prime aerospace and aviation manufacturer, producing aerial systems for both military and civilian usage. It has 16,000 employees as of 2007...
and Negev Phosphates.
Political career
In 1967 Shochat became head of the Arad local councilLocal council (Israel)
Local councils are one of the three types of local government found in Israel, with the other two being cities and regional councils. As of 2003, there were 144 local councils in Israel, these being settlements which pass a minimum threshold enough to justify their operations as independent...
. In addition to his mayoral duties he was also deputy chairman of the Union of Local Authorities, chairman of the Development Towns Committee of the Union of Local Authorities.
In the 1984 Knesset elections
Israeli legislative election, 1984
Elections for the eleventh Knesset were held in Israel on 23 July 1984. Voter turnout was 78.8%. The results saw the Alignment return to being the largest party in the Knesset, a status it had lost in 1977...
he was on the Alignment
Alignment (political party)
The Alignment was an alliance of the major left-wing parties in Israel between the 1960s and 1990s. It was established in 1965 as an alliance of Mapai and Ahdut HaAvoda but was dissolved three years later when the two parties and Rafi formally merged into the Israeli Labor Party...
's Knesset list, but failed to win a seat. However, when Aharon Harel
Aharon Harel
Aharon Harel was an Israeli politician who served as a member of the Knesset for the Alignment between 1981 and 1988.-Biography:Born in Pinsk in Poland , Harel made aliyah to Mandate Palestine in 1935...
resigned from the Knesset in May 1988, Shochat replaced him. He retained his seat in elections in November that year, and was became chairman of the Finance Committee and the Economic Affairs Committee. After being re-elected in 1992 (by which time the Alignment had become the Labour Party), he was appointed Minister of Finance by Yitzhak Rabin
Yitzhak Rabin
' was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77 and 1992 until his assassination in 1995....
. Although he was re-elected again in 1996, the opposition Likud
Likud
Likud is the major center-right political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin in an alliance with several right-wing and liberal parties. Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history, marking the first time the left had...
won the election and Shochat lost his ministerial position.
Following victory for Ehud Barak
Ehud Barak
Ehud Barak is an Israeli politician who served as Prime Minister from 1999 until 2001. He was leader of the Labor Party until January 2011 and holds the posts of Minister of Defense and Deputy Prime Minister in Binyamin Netanyahu's government....
and One Israel
One Israel
One Israel was an alliance of the Labor Party, Meimad and Gesher created to run for the 1999 Knesset elections.-Background:One Israel was formed by Labor leader Ehud Barak in the run-up to the 1999 elections with the aim of making Labor appear more centrist and to reduce its secularist and elitist...
(an alliance of Labour, Meimad
Meimad
Meimad is a left-wing religious Zionist political party in Israel. Founded in 1999, it is based on the ideology of the Meimad movement founded in 1988 by Rabbi Yehuda Amital. At the national level, it was in alliance with the Labour Party, and until the 2006 elections, received 10th spot on the...
and Gesher) in 1999, Shochat was once again appointed Minister of Finance. In October 2000 he was also made Minister of National Infrastructure
National Infrastructure Minister of Israel
The National Infrastructure Minister of Israel is the political head of the Israeli Ministry of National Infrastructure. From its establishment in 1977 until 1996, the post was known as the Minister of Energy and Infrastructure . The current minister is Uzi Landau of Yisrael Beiteinu.It succeeded...
replacing Eliyahu Swisa after Shas
Shas
Shas is an ultra-orthodox religious political party in Israel, primarily representing Sephardic and Mizrahi Haredi Judaism.Shas was founded in 1984 by dissident members of the Ashkenazi dominated Agudat Israel, to represent the interests of religiously observant Sephardic and Mizrahi ...
left Barak's coalition. After Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
won special elections for Prime Minister in 2001, Shochat left the cabinet. In the 2003 elections he also lost his Knesset seat.
After leaving the Knesset, Shochat was commissioned to produce a report on tuition fees for Israeli university students. His report, published in July 2007, recommended raising fees for Bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
s by 70% and increasing government funding for higher education by NIS 1.5 billion.
External links
- Avraham Shochat Jewish Virtual Library