Proposal by the Chancellor of Justice to bring the Work Ability Allowance Act into compliance with the Constitution
Session: 15th Estonian Parliament, 3rd sitting, plenary session
Date: 2024-06-06 13:36
Participating Politicians:
Total Speeches: 8
Membership: 15
Agenda Duration: 10m
AI Summaries: 8/8 Speeches (100.0%)
Analysis: Structured Analysis
Politicians Speaking Time
Politicians
Analysis
Summary
The Riigikogu debated the proposal by Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madise to bring the provisions of the Work Ability Allowance Act (TVS) into conformity with the Constitution. The Chancellor of Justice explained that the current law creates an unequal situation for people with no or partial work ability who receive a large final settlement upon termination of employment. Since the final settlement may include several months' pay (e.g., holiday pay or compensation), this temporarily raises the income above the allowance payment threshold, resulting in the work ability allowance being reduced or its payment being terminated. Madise assessed that this conflicts with Article 28 (2) and Article 12 (1) of the Constitution, citing an example where a disabled person consequently suffered a loss of 500 euros. Both the Constitutional Committee (represented by Katrin Kuusemäe) and the Social Affairs Committee (represented by Õnne Pillak) unanimously supported the Chancellor of Justice's proposal. Both committees emphasized that the vote concerned only supporting the proposal, not finding a specific solution. The Riigikogu supported the Chancellor of Justice's proposal in the vote and tasked the Social Affairs Committee with initiating the corresponding draft bill.
Decisions Made 2
The Riigikogu supported the proposal by the Chancellor of Justice to bring the provisions of the Work Ability Allowance Act into compliance with the Constitution (48 in favor, 0 against, 0 abstentions).
The Social Affairs Committee was assigned the task of initiating a bill to bring the Work Ability Allowance Act into compliance with the Constitution (pursuant to Section 152 of the Riigikogu Rules of Procedure and Internal Rules Act).
Aseesimees Jüri Ratas
AI Summary
Jüri Ratas announced that the third item on the agenda would be the discussion of the Chancellor of Justice's proposal to bring the Work Ability Allowance Act into conformity with the Constitution, and he invited Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madise to the Riigikogu podium to make her presentation.
Õiguskantsler Ülle Madise
AI Summary
The Chancellor of Justice, Ülle Madise, announced that subsections 3 and 3(1) of Section 13 of the Work Ability Allowance Act must be brought into compliance with the Constitution, because final settlements or funds received for multiple months cannot lawfully diminish the support provided to a person with a disability.
Aseesimees Jüri Ratas
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Jüri Ratas thanked the Chancellor of Justice, stated that there were no questions, and invited Katrin Kuusemäe, a member of the Constitutional Committee, to the podium for her presentation.
Katrin Kuusemäe
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
The Constitutional Committee discussed the Chancellor of Justice's proposal to bring the Work Ability Allowance Act into compliance with the Constitution. It heard a thorough overview from Ülle Madise and a representative of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications, decided by consensus in favor of the proposal, and appointed Katrin Kuusemäe as the representative to the lead committee.
Aseesimees Jüri Ratas
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Jüri Ratas thanked [the previous speaker] for the substantive and thorough presentation, noted that there were no questions, and invited Õnne Pillak, the representative of the Social Affairs Committee, to the podium to deliver her report.
Õnne Pillak
Profiling Eesti Reformierakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
The Social Affairs Committee discussed the Chancellor of Justice’s proposal twice and unanimously decided to support it and appoint me, Õnne Pillak, as the representative for this discussion. It also emphasized that today we are only addressing the issue of bringing [it] into compliance with the Constitution, and solutions must be found later.
Aseesimees Jüri Ratas
AI Summary
Jüri Ratas thanked the rapporteur, announced that negotiations were open without restrictions, and then moved on to preparations for the final vote, asking them to take a position and vote in favor of the Chancellor of Justice's proposal.
Aseesimees Jüri Ratas
AI Summary
The result was 48 votes in favor, with no abstentions or votes against. Consequently, the Social Affairs Committee is tasked with initiating a draft bill to bring the Work Ability Allowance Act into conformity with the Constitution, pursuant to § 152 of the Riigikogu Rules of Procedure and Internal Rules Act. The third item on the agenda is concluded. Many thanks to the Chancellor of Justice and his office.