The retired Israeli judge who headed a committee that last month proposed halving university tuition fees has resigned, claiming political interference in advance of this week's general election.
In a letter written before the election, Eliahu Winograd cited interference in his work by the prime minister's office and finance minister Avraham Shochat as the reason.
The Winograd committee was appointed more than a year ago with a mandate to reduce fees.
It comprised four student representatives, two members from the committee of university heads, one from the planning and budgeting committee of the higher education council and one from the treasury.
Although the committee was divided over the issue, it recently agreed to the proposal of halving tuition fees for first degree students in the country's six universities and many first degree colleges over a period of five years, a move designed to strengthen defeated prime minister Ehud Barak's popularity before the elections.
Mr Winograd told The THES that he resigned after Mr Barak wrote to members of the committee, including representatives of the ministry of finance and the planning and budgeting committee of the Council for Higher Education, "telling them how to vote".
According to a source, Mr Winograd resigned because the prime minister tried to "force the committee to reach certain conclusions".
Nissan Limor, director-general of the higher education council, said a five-year plan for higher education would introduce an additional 50,000 students into the system over the next five years at a cost of 1 billion shekels (£165 million).
The 50 per cent cut in fees would also cost 1 billion shekels. "The question is: can the government afford 2 billion shekels to expand the higher education system?" he asked.