Netanyahu Causes Uproar Over Ice Cream Budget

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu caused an uproar over ice cream. Netanyahu was accused by critics of dipping into government funds for a $2,700 per year ice cream budget.

Netanyahu’s love of pistachio ice cream has come under scrutiny after a Hebrew financial newspaper. It then made the front page of a popular mainstream Israeli newspaper.

The Prime Minister’s $2,700-per-year ice cream budget equates to $225 per month, a number that doesn’t sit well for critics, reports The New York Times.

At a time when Israel is facing severe government spending cuts and has a struggling middle class, the news that the prime minister was using government funds to fuel his sweet habit was less than pleasing to critics.

Netanyahu’s foreign minister has already resigned over fraud accusations. His government has also been criticized for its handling of the mysterious Prisoner X, who committed suicide in prison.

In light of the publication, however, it appears Netanyahu has decided to freeze the ice cream budget, notes The Associated Press. The prime minister’s office issued a statement on the budget request, saying that Netanyahu ordered the contract to stop once it came to light.

He also called the contract to purchase ice cream from his favorite parlor in Jerusalem “excessive and unacceptable.” The news didn’t stop the shop from getting businesses though. Israelis flocked to the parlor, called Metudela, to check out his favorite flavors.

Netanyahu’s office added that the cost also included what it would take to host high-ranking officials at the official residence of the prime minister. It also offered a peek into the personal life of Israel’s leader.

Can you imagine having Benjamin Netanyahu’s ice cream budget of $2,700?

[Image by White House photo by Pete Souza [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons]