Government bill · 17th Knesset · published as law 28 March 2007
חוק מרשם האוכלוסין (תיקון מס' 11), התשס"ז-2007Law on the Population Register (Amendment No. 11), 2007 · automatic translation · suggest a correction
Status: התקבלה בקריאה שלישית
Topics: Aliyah, citizenship and immigration* · * from the Knesset's official law classification
Readings
- 31 August 2005 · First reading · להעביר את הצעת החוק לוועדההצעת חוק מרשם האוכלוסין (תיקון מס' 9) (מסירת פרטי רישום לגוף הפועל על-פי חיקוק), התשס"ה-2005Bill on the Population Registry (Amendment No. 9) (Providing registration details to a body acting pursuant to legislation), 2005autoBill passed first reading35 for · 4 against · 1 abst.
- 21 March 2007 · Third reading · אישור החוקהצעת חוק מרשם האוכלוסין (תיקון מס' 11), התשס"ז-2007Bill on the Population Register (Amendment No. 11), 2007autoLaw passed33 for · 7 against
What was said in the plenum
The law regulates the transfer of information from the Population Registry to bodies legally required to verify details (such as banks and lawyers), following a petition to the Supreme Court which ruled that there is no authority for the existing policy without explicit legislative regulation. The debate focused on whether the law properly balances the needs of the bodies requesting information against the citizen's right to privacy, and in particular on the proposal to allow every citizen to know who requested information about them.
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Hebrew original
החוק מסדיר את מסירת מידע ממרשם האוכלוסין לגופים המחויבים על-פי חוק לאמת פרטים (כגון בנקים ועורכי-דין), בעקבות עתירה לבג״ץ שקבעה כי אין סמכות למדיניות הקיימת בלי הסדרה חקיקתית מפורשת. הדיון התמקד בשאלה אם החוק מאזן כראוי בין צורכי הגופים המבקשים מידע לבין זכות האזרח לפרטיות, ובפרט בהצעה לאפשר לכל אזרח לדעת מי פנה לקבל מידע עליו.
Arguments for
- The law is required in order to explicitly regulate in legislation the transfer of information from the Population Registry to bodies obligated to verify details, as the High Court of Justice demanded.Ophir Pines-Paz (Labor)
- The final version includes a series of important amendments and balances to protect privacy - individual inquiries only, accountability and data security, a ban on disclosing nationality and place of birth, and civil, criminal and administrative sanctions - that were not in the original bill.Ophir Pines-Paz (Labor)
- An adequate alternative response to the privacy concern has been provided: a citizen who suspects they have suffered harm or wrongdoing will be able to obtain information about who requested details about them, through regulations to be enacted by the Minister of Interior.Ophir Pines-Paz (Labor)
- Granting a sweeping right to every citizen to know who requested information about them, regardless of suspected harm, will overload the Ministry of Interior's system excessively and harm its functioning.Ophir Pines-Paz (Labor)
Arguments against
- The law is not balanced as long as it allows large and powerful bodies to obtain information about citizens without the citizen having a basic right to know who requested information about them.Dov Khenin (Hadash), Mohammad Barakeh (Hadash)
- Technically there is no obstacle to realizing this right, since the law itself requires the recording of individual queries in the computer system, so information about those requesting information exists and can be disclosed.Dov Khenin (Hadash), Mohammad Barakeh (Hadash)
- The citizen's right to know who is requesting information about them is a democratic principle and a principle of proper administration, and therefore the reservation is substantive rather than marginal, to the point that it could determine support for the entire law.Dov Khenin (Hadash), Mohammad Barakeh (Hadash)
Who spoke (3)
| Member | Faction | Readings | Speeches | In the final vote |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ophir Pines-Paz | Labor coalition | Third reading | 5 | for |
| Dov Khenin | Hadash opposition | Third reading | 2 | against |
| Mohammad Barakeh | Hadash opposition | Third reading | 2 | against |
An automatic summary of the plenum transcripts: the debate on the bill at every reading it was voted on. Arguments are given as the speakers made them; this is not an assessment. The list of speakers comes from the transcript, without a model. Transcripts of the sittings: 1, 2
Reservations, sections and other votes (4)
In order. Votes on reservations and individual sections are shown separately from the vote on the bill as a whole.
- 21 March 2007 · Second reading · שם החוקהצעת חוק מרשם האוכלוסין (תיקון מס' 11), התשס"ז-2007Bill on the Population Register (Amendment No. 11), 2007auto34 for · 6 againstVote on sections of the bill
- 21 March 2007 · Second reading · הסתייגותהצעת חוק מרשם האוכלוסין (תיקון מס' 11), התשס"ז-2007Bill on the Population Register (Amendment No. 11), 2007auto10 for · 29 againstVote on a reservation (amendment)
- 21 March 2007 · Second reading · קריאה שנייההצעת חוק מרשם האוכלוסין (תיקון מס' 11), התשס"ז-2007Bill on the Population Register (Amendment No. 11), 2007auto36 for · 7 againstVote on sections of the bill
- 21 March 2007 · Second reading · קריאה שנייההצעת חוק מרשם האוכלוסין (תיקון מס' 11), התשס"ז-2007Bill on the Population Register (Amendment No. 11), 2007auto36 for · 7 againstVote on sections of the bill