photographer: Yossi Zamir

MK Faina Kirshenbaum's bill opposes the criteria set by the Housing Minister Atias and demands that military or national service be compulsory for those who wish to buy affordable housing, as well as both heads of the household to be employed.

Yisrael Beiteinu made it clear that its members will not give up. They would pass the law, even if it required support by the opposition.

Yisrael Beiteinu and the Shas political party have been negotiating for a compromise for the last two weeks. One concession offered to Yisrael Beiteinu was housing benefits to the elderly population from the former Soviet Union.

When Shas MK Attias presented his proposal three weeks ago, he deliberately omitted any clauses about the earning power of couples eligible for housing. Yisrael Beiteinu argued that Attias had designed the bill to benefit the ultra-Orthodox sector.

Yisrael Beiteinu will file suit at the High Court on Wednesday against these criteria. In the meantime, MK Kirshenbaum announced her "Affordable Housing Act" to give the working population and those who serve in the IDF priority – something that has never been done before.