New Israeli lawmaker requests 1 shekel salary

Barkat sent a letter on Tuesday to the Knesset’s accountant Haim Avidor and asked that he receive only NIS 1 (less than a dollar) in his annual salary as MK.

By TPS

Former Jerusalem Mayor and new Member of the Knesset Nir Barkat, who served as mayor of Jerusalem for the last decade at a salary of one shekel a year, asked the Knesset accountant to set the same salary for his new position as a Knesset member.

“For me, it is a great privilege to serve the public without receiving in return,” he stated.

Formerly a businessman, Barkat made his fortune in hi-tech. However, Israel’s Knesset has previously seen wealthy members who did not ask to forgo their paycheck, which is funded by the public.

In related news, new MK Shelly Chaimovitz asked to have the deer-hide upholstering of her chair at the Knesset plenum replaced with a synthetic fabric because she is a vegan. The Knesset turned down her request

KnessetNir Barkat