The hearing on the petition to the High Court of Justice against the cabinet's decision to permit natural gas exports has again been postponed. The petition, which was to be heard on September 17, has now now been postponed until October 20.
In the petition by Labor Party chair MK Shelly Yachimovich, it is claimed that the cabinet does not have the legal authority to make a decision on gas exports in the coming decades and that the issue must be decided by the Knesset.
The reason for the latest postponement is technical - the scheduling pressures of the judges. A seven judge panel of the High Court will discuss the petition and it has been complicated to schedule a date when all the justices are available.
Minister of Energy and Water Resources Silvan Shalom recently said that "We will go for Knesset legislation if the High Court requires us to enact a law in order to arrange gas exports."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on September 11, 2013
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