First Reading of the Draft Legislation (736 SE) on the Amendment of the State Budget Act and the Act Amending the State Budget Act
Session: 15th Riigikogu, 6th Session, Plenary Sitting
Date: 2025-10-13 19:47
Participating Politicians:
Total Speeches: 86
Membership: 15
Agenda Duration: 49m
AI Summaries: 86/86 Speeches (100.0%)
Analysis: Structured Analysis
Politicians Speaking Time
Politicians
Analysis
Summary
The agenda item was the first reading of Draft Bill 736, initiated by the Government of the Republic, concerning the amendment of the State Budget Act and the Act amending the State Budget Act. Minister of Finance Jürgen Ligi introduced the draft bill, the main objectives of which were the transposition of the European Union budgetary framework directive (including establishing a new ceiling for the structural deficit at 1.5% of GDP), increasing budget transparency (by integrating an activity-based and economic view into the 2026 budget), streamlining the granting of subsidies, and increasing the flexibility of local government financing. Ligi also explained the limitation of the government reserve to 3% of the volume of expenditure and the termination of carrying over unused balances.
During the debate, Members of the Riigikogu (Peeter Ernits, Rain Epler, Aivar Kokk) criticized the new rules, arguing that they increase bureaucracy and restrict the democratic decision-making process (especially in connection with the EU's four-year frameworks). Ligi defended the new rules, emphasizing the role of expertise and the European Commission in curbing political populism. A discussion also arose regarding the level of budget detail, where the opposition demanded a more precise breakdown of expenditures (labor, economic, social costs), to which Ligi replied that international recommendations and practical necessity require flexibility in reallocating expenditures. Maris Lauri, the rapporteur for the Finance Committee, confirmed that members of the Riigikogu have exceptionally good access to detailed budget data through the budget information system.
Decisions Made 2
The first reading of Bill 736 was concluded.
The deadline for the submission of amendments was set as October 27th at 5:15 PM.
Esimees Lauri Hussar
AI Summary
Chairman Lauri Hussar moved on to the fourth item on the agenda, which was the first reading of draft act 736, the Act amending the State Budget Act, initiated by the Government of the Republic, and invited Minister of Finance Jürgen Ligi to the rostrum to deliver the presentation.
Esimees Lauri Hussar
AI Summary
Chairman Lauri Hussar announced that the session would now proceed to the fourth item on the agenda, which is the first reading of Draft Bill 736, initiated by the Government of the Republic, concerning amendments to the State Budget Act and related legislation. He then invited Minister of Finance Jürgen Ligi to the rostrum to deliver his report.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi is introducing extensive amendments to the State Budget Act. The primary objectives of these changes are to transpose the European Union’s updated fiscal framework into Estonian law, increase the transparency and comprehensibility of the state budget (by integrating activity-based and economic perspectives), streamline the provision of domestic grants, and reduce bureaucracy in the financing of local governments, while simultaneously establishing new limits for the structural deficit and the size of the government reserve.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi introduced comprehensive amendments to the State Budget Basic Law, which transpose the updated framework for the European Union's fiscal surveillance into Estonian law. These amendments establish new structural deficit limits and the requirement for a budget structural plan. Furthermore, budget transparency is enhanced through the integration of the performance and economic perspectives, the conditions for granting and recovering state subsidies are specified, and local governments are granted greater flexibility in the use of support funds and case-by-case grants.
Esimees Lauri Hussar
AI Summary
Chairman Lauri Hussar thanked the esteemed minister, announced that he had at least one question to ask, and then requested Peeter Ernits to come to the podium to pose the question.
Peeter Ernits
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Peeter Ernits draws attention to the shortcomings of the reform's comparative material, questioning whether the page shaded gray concerning the 2026 data is a printing error, or if crucial operating costs and the budget figures for the Financial Intelligence Unit and the State Shared Service Centre were intentionally omitted from it.
Peeter Ernits
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Peeter Ernits draws the minister's attention to an error in the document concerning the reform, where the 2026 comparison data (e.g., regarding the Financial Intelligence Unit and operating costs) is presented on page ten as a grayed-out area, asking whether this is a printing error or the deliberate removal of the data.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi offered his thanks but refused to comment on the topic, while simultaneously requesting clarification as to which page the information in question was located on.
Peeter Ernits
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Peeter Ernits directed the listeners to the tenth page, noting that the topic under discussion was located right there.
Peeter Ernits
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Peeter Ernits briefly refers to the location of the material, specifying that the necessary information is on page ten.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi drew attention to a possible error in the material being examined, asking if they were looking at the wrong page, but quickly received confirmation that the sought-after interest and equity income were, in fact, present in the correct cells.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi cleared up the confusion that had arisen while reviewing the document, explaining that the financial data being sought—such as interest and owner returns—are located in specific cells, not necessarily on the wrong page.
Peeter Ernits
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Peeter Ernits stressed with a short, surprised exclamation that the material being covered was extensive, saying: "A whole page!"
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
In his short presentation, Minister of Finance Jürgen Ligi addressed topics related to proprietary income and annexes to the law.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Minister of Finance Jürgen Ligi briefly addressed issues concerning owners' income, also referencing the relevant annex to the law.
Peeter Ernits
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Peeter Ernits briefly cast doubt on whether the law under consideration was truly correct and relevant.
Peeter Ernits
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Peeter Ernits briefly stressed that the fundamental requirement is ultimately that the law must be correct and appropriate.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi clarified the data in the presented table, explaining that the blankness of the 2026 column is correct and intentional because the legal appendix that was valid in 2025 will be abolished. He did, however, find that this fact should have been clearly highlighted in the document.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi clarified that although the 2026 column is blank, this is correct because the corresponding appendix to the law has been abolished, and therefore the comparison with the content of the previous year is relevant, even though the fact of its abolition could have been noted more clearly.
Esimees Lauri Hussar
AI Summary
Chairman Lauri Hussar concluded his address with a brief thank you and subsequently gave the floor to Riina Sikkut.
Riina Sikkut
Profiling Sotsiaaldemokraatliku Erakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Riina Sikkut is sharply criticizing the modified version of the domestic budgetary rule, which has become excessively long and bureaucratic. She questions why there is a need to create such an extensive administrative obligation and reporting system, especially in a situation where the rules are ostensibly being relaxed just to accommodate the government’s budgetary strategy.
Riina Sikkut
Profiling Sotsiaaldemokraatliku Erakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Riina Sikkut criticizes the excessive bureaucracy in the modified version of the domestic budget rule, which has emerged despite the rules being relaxed specifically to accommodate the government's budget strategy. She questions why, in the event of non-compliance, it is necessary to create such a massive administrative obligation and reporting requirement, which already spans two and a half pages.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi concedes that changes to the budget rules will inevitably lead to an expansion of bureaucracy. While this expansion can be described and is driven by necessity, its path is nonetheless paved with noble intentions.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi conceded that changes to budget rules inevitably lead to the expansion of bureaucracy, noting ironically that this road is usually paved with noble intentions, which is precisely the typical cause of bureaucratic growth.
Esimees Lauri Hussar
AI Summary
Chairman Lauri Hussar gave the floor to Rain Epler, calling him to the podium.
Rain Epler
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Rain Epler expresses concern regarding the new budgetary rules, which grant excessive control over national finances to the technocrats of the European Commission. He questions what role elections and the Riigikogu will play if Brussels pre-sets the rails for the state budget, making deviation impossible, thereby endangering the democratic process.
Rain Epler
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Rain Epler expresses concern regarding the content of the directive and the draft bill, which deals with national frameworks and spending limits. He emphasizes that if technocrats in Brussels gain control over state finances through legislation, beginning to assess budgets for compliance with predetermined parameters, the very meaning of elections and the decision-making power of the Riigikogu in member states becomes questionable.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi expresses profound respect for financial expertise and scorns political arbitrariness, emphasizing that developed democracy relies on balancing mechanisms such as the separation of powers, the rule of law, and a free press, which are essential for curbing political populism and the abuse of power.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi stresses his profound respect for expertise and despises political caprice, arguing that a developed democracy does not imply unlimited power. Instead, it relies on balancing mechanisms—such as the rule of law, the separation of powers, and a free press—that restrain the ambitions of politicians and the disregard for rules fueled by populism.
Esimees Lauri Hussar
AI Summary
The Chairman, Lauri Hussar, thanked the previous speaker and subsequently gave the floor to Peeter Ernits, asking him to present his second question.
Peeter Ernits
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Peeter Ernits expresses profound skepticism regarding the ongoing reform, likening it to merely dressing up a beggar—emphasizing that activity-based nonsense remains fundamentally nonsensical, no matter how polished the presentation is—and questions whether the government plans to continue this futile process right up until the end of its term in office.
Peeter Ernits
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Peeter Ernits sharply criticizes the reform of activity-based absurdities, using the metaphor of a crippled person whom dressing up will not make normal. He also questions whether such cosmetic reform makes any sense at all, or if it is simply being continued until the end of the current government's term in power.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi accused his opponent of stigmatizing people, calling them "wretches" and "abnormal," and explained that the activity-based budget is an international recommendation, the implementation of which was actually begun by the previous EKREIKE government, thereby highlighting the opposing side's political inconsistency and the binding lines in budget policy.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi criticized his opponent for using labeling language, specifically pointing out that it referred to people who are different as abnormal. He then defended the activity-based budget, noting ironically that this internationally recommended budget format was actually implemented in Estonia precisely by the opponent's own former coalition (the EKREIKE government), thereby highlighting political opportunism and the binding nature of cross-party commitments.
Esimees Lauri Hussar
AI Summary
Chairman Lauri Hussar thanked the previous speaker and then gave the floor to Rain Epler.
Rain Epler
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Rain Epler is trying to get confirmation from Jürgen's answer as to whether the latter believes the European Commission should have used its stronger position to intervene and prevent the Estonian government's rushed and now reversible tax decisions, thereby calling the government to order despite its mandate.
Rain Epler
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Rain Epler asks Jürgen to confirm whether he would genuinely prefer a stronger European Commission, one that would have intervened two years ago and prevented the current government coalition from making rushed tax and other decisions—decisions which are now gradually being reversed—despite the government having a strong mandate at the time.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi views the European Commission's role as curbing states with weaker discipline and populist tendencies. He emphasizes that Estonia has gone from being a former budget star student to a country running a chronic deficit, thanks to the changes in budget rules and the "tax hump" introduced by Jüri Ratas's coalition. Ligi supports sanctions against rule violators, preferring rationality over populism.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi believes that the European Commission's primary task is to curb populist and weakly disciplined states. He sharply criticizes Estonia's chronic budget deficit, which began with the Jüri Ratas government changing budget rules and implementing the "tax hump," while simultaneously emphasizing his preference for rationality and supporting the application of sanctions against member states that ignore recommendations.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi gave the floor to Priit Sibul, inviting him to the rostrum.
Priit Sibul
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Priit Sibul is criticizing the government's budget policy concerning the permanent subsidy of 40–50 million euros allocated to Eesti Raudtee (Estonian Railways). He is asking the minister why this regular and predictable expense was excluded from the State Budget Strategy (RES) and kept in the reserve, especially since a recovery in rail freight volumes is not anticipated.
Priit Sibul
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Priit Sibul expresses concern that the persistently large subsidies for Estonian Railways (Eesti Raudtee), amounting to around 45 million euros, are listed in the state budget strategy (RES) as a reserve rather than as planned expenditures. He asks the minister what the purpose of such concealment is, given that a recovery in rail transport is not anticipated.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi of the Ministry of Finance acknowledges that the railway infrastructure requires additional financing because current revenue is insufficient. However, the exact amount needed is unclear and will be determined over the course of the year. For this reason, the necessary funds are being held in reserve to avoid misleading the public with inaccurate figures, as he lacks the competence of a railway specialist to name the correct sum.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi conceded that the railway infrastructure definitely needs additional funding because current turnover is insufficient. However, the exact amount depends on attracting foreign capital and will become clear within the year. Consequently, the Ministry of Finance, which lacks the immediate authority to name the precise figure, will keep the necessary funds in reserve and allocate them according to the clarified need.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Chairman Toomas Kivimägi yielded the floor to Riina Sikkut, requesting that she begin her presentation.
Riina Sikkut
Profiling Sotsiaaldemokraatliku Erakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Riina Sikkut sought a "yes" or "no" answer from the minister to three specific questions, in order to clarify whether the submitted draft bill relaxes the domestic budget rule, increases bureaucracy, and reduces the sustainability of public finances.
Riina Sikkut
Profiling Sotsiaaldemokraatliku Erakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Riina Sikkut addressed the minister, posing three specific questions requiring a simple yes or no answer, regarding the bill's impact on the easing of the domestic budgetary rule, the increase in bureaucracy, and the sustainability of state finances.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi responded to three questions, giving an affirmative answer to one of them. He explained that bureaucracy constitutes a necessary regulatory framework and stressed that while unavoidable national defense expenditures deteriorate the state's finances, this is a security policy decision that ultimately ensures, rather than diminishes, sustainability, even though this fact brings no pleasure to the Finance Minister.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi responded to questions, confirming the first one in the affirmative and explaining that although bureaucracy is necessary, the unavoidable national defense expenditures—which admittedly worsen the country's financial situation—are a security policy decision that ensures sustainability in the long run.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi handed the floor over to Aivar Koka.
Aivar Kokk
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Aivar Kokk is demanding an explanation from the minister regarding the experts involved in drafting the bill, and he emphasizes the necessity of making the state budget structure more transparent by clearly detailing both expenditures (including labor, economic, and depreciation costs) and revenues, thereby ensuring clarity for both members of the Riigikogu and ordinary citizens.
Aivar Kokk
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Aivar Kokk questioned the minister regarding the experts responsible for the draft bill, asserting that the state budget must be significantly more transparent. He stressed that the budget should clearly delineate labor, economic, social, and investment expenditures, alongside revenues, ensuring its content is comprehensible to both members of the Riigikogu and the general public.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi sharply criticized the opposition party’s budget commentary, dismissing it as bought and biased expertise. He simultaneously stressed that making the budget structure rigid by strictly separating labor costs and operating expenses is unacceptable, arguing that ministries require flexibility, in line with international recommendations, both when implementing cuts and when addressing the serious public sector wage problem. This problem stems from salaries lagging behind the private sector, forcing ministries to reallocate operating expenses to cover wages.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi is criticizing the opposition's purchased and biased expert assessments, along with their misleading budget commentary. At the same time, he is defending the budget's flexible structure, particularly the decision not to differentiate between personnel and operating costs. He argues this approach is an international recommendation and is essential because ministries have vastly different cost structures. Ligi stresses that this flexibility is critically important because the public sector faces a genuine salary crisis, which compels ministries—including the Ministry of Finance itself—to reallocate funds from operating expenses to salary costs in order to retain staff and maintain competitiveness.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi gave the floor to Priit Sibul, inviting him to the podium.
Priit Sibul
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Priit Sibul acknowledges the complexity of the situation, expresses skepticism about the government's plan to amend budget rules in order to take out loans and deliver on election promises, and demands a technical budgetary explanation from the Ministry of Finance regarding how moving unpredictable expenditures (around 150 million) into the reserve affects the deficit calculation.
Priit Sibul
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Priit Sibul considers the situation complex, questioning the wisdom of changing budget rules and taking out an additional loan to fulfill election promises. He also poses a technical question: how does setting aside future large expenses (such as the 150 million for the Ministry of Climate) in a reserve, rather than booking them to an expenditure line, affect the calculation and reduction of the state budget deficit?
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi confirmed that reserves do not affect the deficit, but primarily focused his criticism on the fulfillment of poor election promises that have been financed by taking out loans and loosening the budget, stressing the need to correct the mistakes made by others, particularly in the area of taxation.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi confirmed that the reallocation of reserves will not affect the deficit, but sharply criticized the previous practice of fulfilling bad election promises (referencing 2016) by taking out loans and loosening the budget, emphasizing that such mistakes, especially in taxation, must be corrected.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi invited Anti Allase to the podium.
Anti Allas
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Anti Allas requested an overview from the minister regarding how the ongoing draft legislation alters the regulations governing local municipalities, while also asking for clarification on the bill's most significant effects on these local governments.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi introduced changes to the financing schemes for local governments, specifying that the distribution principles of the equalization fund will henceforth be determined in the state budget, while the bases for the allocation of the support fund will be stipulated in sectoral legislation. He also emphasized that the granting of case-by-case subsidies will be simplified, giving the responsible minister greater authority to provide local governments (LGUs) with grants for operating costs and investments without the obligation to negotiate.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi is introducing changes to the local government financing system. Under the new system, the distribution principles of the equalization fund will henceforth be determined in the state budget. Furthermore, the bases for allocating the support fund and permanent grants will be stipulated by area-specific laws and regulations. This simultaneously simplifies the responsible minister’s ability to provide local governments (LGUs) with case-by-case grants and requires a ministerial regulation concerning the financing of state tasks.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Vice-Speaker Toomas Kivimägi gave the floor to Aivar Kokk so that he could ask his second question.
Aivar Kokk
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Aivar Kokk highlights the issue of unfair budget flexibility, questioning why local governments are required to appear before the council for every single budget line amendment, while ministers are able to reallocate economic and personnel costs at their own discretion without the approval of the Riigikogu.
Aivar Kokk
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Aivar Kokk is calling into question the double standard that allows ministers to reallocate economic and salary expenses at their discretion without the approval of the Riigikogu, while local governments must present themselves before the council for every single budget line change. He asks why local governments should not also be granted the same budgetary flexibility.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi explains that the reallocation of the budget, increasing wage costs at the expense of operational expenditures, is taking place "based on necessity," not arbitrarily, in order to cope with the challenging labor market. He stressed that although this constitutes a general budget cut, the sectors exceptionally receiving additional salary funds (such as the police, rescuers, the Defense Forces, and cultural workers) are justified.
Rahandusminister Jürgen Ligi
AI Summary
Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi explains that the reallocation of the budget from economic expenditures to salary expenditures is a justified action in a challenging labor market, emphasizing that this should be done based on necessity, not discretion. He stressed that while this constitutes a general budget cut, certain sectors (the police, rescue workers, the Defense Forces, medicine, cultural workers, and special welfare) have exceptionally received an increase in their wage fund.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi concluded the question round with the minister, thanked him, and subsequently gave the floor to Maris Lauri, a member of the Finance Committee, to present the decisions reached by the lead committee.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Chairman Toomas Kivimägi thanked the Minister, concluded the round of questions, and subsequently gave the floor to Maris Lauri, a member of the Finance Committee, so that she could introduce the discussion held and the decisions adopted by the lead committee.
Maris Lauri
Profiling Eesti Reformierakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Maris Lauri provides an overview of the consensus decisions reached by the Finance Committee in preparation for the first reading of the draft bill, scheduled for October 13th. She emphasizes that the Estonian budget information system offers exceptionally high levels of detail and transparency in international comparison, which enables Riigikogu members to propose substantive amendments. She also notes that although budget rules and levels of detail were discussed, the activities and metrics of the programs require continued refinement and organization, which remains the responsibility of the ministries.
Maris Lauri
Profiling Eesti Reformierakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Maris Lauri, speaking on behalf of the Riigikogu Finance Committee, provided an overview of the preparation of the bill for its first reading. In addition to reaching consensus decisions, the focus was placed on budget rules, as well as the detail and transparency of the budget. The Committee stressed that, thanks to the budget information system, members of the Estonian Parliament enjoy exceptionally good access to detailed budget data compared to their international counterparts. This access allows them to propose substantive amendments, even though the process of organizing programs, activities, and metrics within the ministries remains ongoing.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi concluded the previous discussion, noting that no questions had been asked, and subsequently opened the floor for debate, first giving the floor to Rain Epler, a member of the EKRE faction.
Rain Epler
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Rain Epler warns that a seemingly technical draft bill, which adopts European Union requirements, grants the European Commission excessive control over member states' budgets by requiring the confirmation of four-year targets from which the Riigikogu (Estonian Parliament) is excluded. In his estimation, this process severely undermines democracy, allowing technocrats to neutralize election results and block ideologically unsuitable governments (especially under the banner of climate goals). Therefore, he calls on the government to withdraw the bill.
Rain Epler
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Rain Epler sharply criticizes the draft bill currently under discussion, which he assesses as detrimental to democracy because it grants the European Commission excessive control over national medium-term budgetary objectives, thereby excluding the Riigikogu from the decision-making process. Furthermore, he argues that it creates an opportunity for technocrats to use climate goals to neutralize the policies of ideologically unsuitable governments, which is why he is demanding the withdrawal of the bill.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Vice-Speaker Toomas Kivimägi thanked the previous speaker and invited Aivar Kok to the podium on behalf of the Isamaa faction.
Aivar Kokk
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Aivar Kokk criticized three budget-related draft bills, faulting the government for a lack of transparency in the allocation of large sums (such as SmartCap and the defense industry fund), noting that detailed explanations are missing. He also raised suspicions about a political ulterior motive behind the temporary shelving of the income tax increase, especially given that the overall tax burden has grown by nearly two billion euros. Finally, he highlighted the Isamaa party’s proposal to amend the State Budget Act to make the budget structure more readable and detailed for Riigikogu members (by presenting labor and management costs as separate programs).
Aivar Kokk
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Aivar Kokk sharply criticized the draft legislation presented by the Minister of Finance, pointing out the disproportionate growth in expenditures in the state budget amendments compared to the savings achieved, as well as the lack of transparency in allocating tens of millions to funds (such as SmartCap and the defense industry fund), about which no answers are being provided. He also expressed deep skepticism regarding the cancellation of the income tax hike, viewing it as a pre-election tactic that might return after the elections, and stressed the necessity of amending the State Budget Act to make the budget more readable and detailed for members of parliament.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Chairman Toomas Kivimägi offered only an extremely brief affirmative response.
Aivar Kokk
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Aivar Kokk sharply criticizes the opaqueness of the state budget and the excessive decision-making power of ministers in reallocating funds, demanding the detailed itemization of costs and subsidies for every legal entity and the revocation of the minister's right to alter budget limits. He cites, for example, the 2023 salary increase and an unexplained transaction amounting to 67 million euros, which is why the Isamaa Party is submitting amendments to the draft bill aimed at increasing transparency.
Aivar Kokk
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Aivar Kokk emphasizes the need to increase state budget transparency, demanding a more detailed breakdown of expenditures and subsidies for every legal entity, and limiting the right of ministers to change the allocation of funds specified in the budget, granting this authority solely to the Government of the Republic. He cites the 2023 salary increase case and a suspicious transaction totaling 67 million euros as examples that demonstrate the budget's black holes and lack of oversight, and promises to submit the relevant amendment proposals.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi thanked [the assembly/previous speaker] and then gave the floor to Maris Lauri to speak on behalf of the Estonian Reform Party faction.
Maris Lauri
Profiling Eesti Reformierakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Maris Lauri criticized the positions taken by previous speakers, emphasizing the necessity of adhering to agreements related to the European Union and the euro, while simultaneously defending the imposition of restrictions on the use of EU funds. Furthermore, she strongly advised her colleagues to read the introductory section of the draft budget in order to understand the terminology and avoid incompetence, calling on everyone to do a more diligent job and to seek assistance from colleagues if necessary.
Maris Lauri
Profiling Eesti Reformierakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Maris Lauri refuted the positions taken by previous speakers, stressing that the agreements concluded upon joining both the European Union and the euro remain in force, and that setting restrictions on the use of EU funds is entirely reasonable given Estonia's status as a net recipient. She also strongly urged her colleagues to read the budget thoroughly, especially the introductory section, to avoid errors in understanding financial concepts and accounting practices, calling for greater diligence and competence from everyone.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi closed the debate and announced that, upon the proposal of the lead committee, the first reading of Bill 736 had been concluded, setting the deadline for submitting amendments as 5:15 PM on October 27 of the current year, and thereby also concluding the proceedings on the fourth item on the agenda.
Aseesimees Toomas Kivimägi
AI Summary
Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi closed the debate, announced the completion of the first reading of Bill 736, based on the proposal of the lead committee, and set the deadline for submitting amendments as 5:15 PM on October 27 of the current year, thus concluding the proceedings on the fourth item on the agenda.