Opposition leader MK Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) slammed the proposed Draft Law during a party meeting, promising to overturn it as soon as he has the opportunity.
“I have passed two Draft Laws in my life, in two different governments,” Lapid said. “One of those times was together with [Prime Minister] Benjamin Netanyahu. Neither of them was perfect, but they were a step in the right direction. It was an attempt to prevent Israeli society from falling apart the way it is threatening to do now.
“If the government repeats the mistake of passing the National Shirk Law on its own, it will force us to announce that we do not recognize it, and we will cancel it at the first opportunity we have.”
Lapid then called to hold a discussion on the law, saying, “I suggest to the government – and especially to the haredi parties – to hold a dialogue on the Draft Law. To sit together, to speak about it in the President’s Residence, at least to try to see if it is possible to reach a plan that is agreed on, that will not lead to an even greater rift.”

Meanwhile, former Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu) has refused to hold dialogue on the matter.
At the heart of the government plan, which was formulated by the IDF, is a clause which would lower the age of exemption from service from 26 to 23. Such a step would remove the requirement for haredi men ages 23-26 to sit and learn in yeshiva in order to avoid enlistment, allowing them to join the workforce earlier. The plan would also increase compensation for those who serve in the regular and reserve forces, and the length of IDF service would change based on the job a soldier holds and how important it is to the IDF.