Labor Party chairwoman Shelly Yacimovich on Sunday slammed the government over
the August inflation figures, saying the picture would look even worse in a
month when the 1-percentage point value-added tax increase is taken into
account.
On September 1, VAT rose to 17 percent.
Inflation rose by
more than 1% in August, to 106.2 points (based on 100.0 as the average for the
consumer basket in 2010), the Central Bureau of Statistics reported over the
weekend. The Consumer Price Index has risen by 2.1% since January 1.
The
largest price increases last month were for cigarettes (14.2%), fresh produce
(7.9%), culture and entertainment (2%), transport (1.8%), housing (1.1%), food
(0.9%) and furniture (0.6%). On the other hand, the price of clothing and
footwear decreased by 6%, and of communications devices fell by
1.1%.
Yacimovich argued that these figures and last week’s State
Comptroller’s Report demonstrated Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s “archaic
economic policy, which has caused the loss of control over the price of housing,
health, gasoline, pasta, cheese, fruit and vegetables.”
She said that
only Netanyahu was capable of creating a situation in which on one hand there
was an economic slowdown and shrinkage in purchasing power, while on the other
hand monthly inflation broke a 17- year record.
State Comptroller Yosef
Shapira on Wednesday slammed the Finance; Industry, Trade and Labor; and
Agriculture ministries for failing to control skyrocketing food and dairy prices
during the years 2005-2011.
Yonah Jeremy Bob and Globes contributed to
this report.