Draft law amending the Accounting Act (600 SE) – third reading
Session: 15th Riigikogu, 5th session, plenary session
Date: 2025-06-19 13:21
Participating Politicians:
Total Speeches: 13
Membership: 15
Agenda Duration: 13m
AI Summaries: 13/13 Speeches (100.0%)
Analysis: Structured Analysis
Politicians Speaking Time
Politicians
Analysis
Summary
The first item on the agenda was the third reading of Bill 600, initiated by the Isamaa faction, which sought to amend the Accounting Act and postpone the implementation of mandatory sustainability reporting (ESG). Urmas Reinsalu, speaking for the Isamaa faction, criticized the government for having pushed through a system last autumn that would have imposed an additional burden of over 30 million euros on companies. Reinsalu stressed that while the adoption of the bill was the correct step, it was only a temporary solution. He urged the government to open a substantive dialogue at the European Union level aimed at making sustainability reporting voluntary, citing the NG Investeeringud group's annual million-euro expenditure on reporting that, he claimed, nobody actually reads. Reinsalu also criticized the government's dual approach to bureaucracy, pointing to the ban on parking commercial vehicles on sidewalks as an example.
Õnne Pillak, representing the Reform Party, affirmed that the government supports the drive to reduce bureaucracy and has already made 202 corresponding decisions. She welcomed the swift handling of the opposition's bill and confirmed that efforts are underway at the European level to make reporting voluntary in the future. However, Rain Epler, representing EKRE, accused the Reform Party of lying and hypocrisy, arguing that the coalition was only now correcting its previous mistake, despite having previously defended the necessity of ESG reporting. Anastassia Kovalenko-Kõlvart, representing the Centre Faction, emphasized the importance of cooperation between the coalition and the opposition in supporting the bill. The bill passed the final vote and was adopted into law.
Decisions Made 1
The Draft Act 600, initiated by the Isamaa faction, concerning the amendment of the Accounting Act, was adopted as law (59 in favor, 2 against).
Most Active Speaker
Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa) was the most active speaker, presenting a detailed and critical overview of the burden imposed by sustainability reporting and the government's anti-bureaucracy activities. His position is better.
Aseesimees Arvo Aller
AI Summary
Arvo Aller announced that they would proceed with the first item on the agenda: the third reading of Draft Law 600, the bill amending the Accounting Act, initiated by the Isamaa faction. Following this, inter-factional negotiations would be opened, for which Urmas Reinsalu, speaking on behalf of the Isamaa faction, requested three minutes of extra time.
Urmas Reinsalu
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Urmas Reinsalu said that postponing the mandatory nature of sustainability reports does not solve the problem, arguing that it creates a significant additional burden for large companies and that nobody reads these reports. He called for a substantive dialogue at the level of Estonia and the European Union to eliminate mandatory climate bureaucracy and protect the competitiveness of the Estonian economy.
Urmas Reinsalu
Profiling Isamaa fraktsioonAI Summary
Urmas Reinsalu sharply criticizes the government’s passive stance toward European Union bureaucracy, particularly the mandatory system of sustainability reporting, which Isamaa believes is a mistake and burdens companies with tens of millions of euros without providing any tangible benefit. He demands that the government actively start defending the competitiveness of the Estonian economy by initiating a substantive dialogue at the EU level aimed at abolishing this reporting obligation and making it voluntary.
Aseesimees Arvo Aller
AI Summary
The Deputy Speaker expressed thanks, and Õnne Pillak then submitted a request on behalf of the Reform Party faction.
Õnne Pillak
Profiling Eesti Reformierakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Õnne Pillak emphasizes that the government is reducing bureaucracy, noting that 202 decisions have been made to repeal or amend bureaucratic regulations, and this bill demonstrates how quickly decisions can be made, even though the sustainability report is being postponed for two years and could potentially be voluntary in the future. Therefore, I urge everyone to support this.
Õnne Pillak
Profiling Eesti Reformierakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Õnne Pillak confirmed that the government's clear priority is reducing bureaucracy, evidenced by over 200 decisions already made and the two-year postponement of the sustainability reporting requirement. She also urged support for the opposition bill currently under discussion, noting that it would expedite the delivery of crucial relief measures to businesses.
Aseesimees Arvo Aller
AI Summary
The speech includes thanks, and a request is presented by Rain Epler on behalf of the EKRE faction.
Rain Epler
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Rain Epler criticizes that despite promises to reduce bureaucracy, the recent debate surrounding the nature conservation law draft and ESG reporting introduces new complexities regarding logging restrictions and exposes the inconsistency of the Reform Party.
Rain Epler
Profiling Fraktsiooni mittekuuluvad Riigikogu liikmedAI Summary
Rain Epler categorically refutes the claims about reducing bureaucracy, citing as an example the draft of the new Nature Conservation Act, which establishes complex rules for logging. Furthermore, he accuses the Reform Party of taking credit for abolishing the mandatory ESG reporting requirement, despite the fact that they themselves had previously implemented it and only began dismantling it after the European Union initiated the move, thus merely cleaning up the mess they themselves had created.
Aseesimees Arvo Aller
AI Summary
Announcement: Anastassia Kovalenko-Kõlvart will now take the floor for an address, and she has two minutes.
Anastassia Kovalenko-Kõlvart
Profiling Eesti Keskerakonna fraktsioonAI Summary
Anastassia Kovalenko-Kõlvart said she was pleased that the coalition is ready to support the opposition's draft bill, which is an important step for the development of democracy and breaking the Riigikogu deadlock. She also emphasized support for the bill concerning the reduction of bureaucracy and expressed hope that cooperation regarding the Centre Party's proposals would continue in the autumn.
Aseesimees Arvo Aller
AI Summary
Deputy Chairman Arvo Aller announced that the debates were concluding and the lead committee wished to proceed with the final vote on Draft Act 600, the amendment to the Accounting Act initiated by the Isamaa faction, requesting the members of the Riigikogu to take a position and cast their votes.
Aseesimees Arvo Aller
AI Summary
The Riigikogu passed Bill 600 into law: 59 votes in favor, 2 against, with no abstentions.