By Plenary Sessions: Mart Võrklaev

The political stance heavily emphasizes fiscal discipline and macroeconomic stability, voicing concern over inflation and the state budget deficit. Simultaneously, high defense spending (exceeding 5% of GDP) is supported, with an insistence on finding permanent funding for these costs through current revenues, in line with central bank recommendations. The speaker backs the government’s tax policy measures (such as income tax exemption) aimed at boosting domestic consumption, but remains critical of wage increases financed by deficit spending.

The political focus is centered on the implementation and supervision of financial regulation. The speaker is interested in the progress made in carrying out the new tasks assigned by the Riigikogu (the supervision of crypto asset market participants and credit institutions). This represents a results-based approach, emphasizing legal enforcement and market influence.

The political stance is strongly pro-regulation, focusing on protecting depositors by restructuring the operations of savings and loan associations (credit unions). The goal is to ensure that cooperatives publicly soliciting deposits are subject to the supervision of the Financial Supervision Authority and the protection of the Guarantee Fund, thereby mitigating significant business risks. The position is clearly centered on policy and protective measures (risk mitigation).

The political position is divided: one speaker (S1) expresses strong opposition to the new taxes (car tax, sugar tax, progressive income tax, corporate income tax), accusing the Social Democrats of tax frenzy. The second speaker (S2) defends the government’s decision to allocate 8 million euros from the motor vehicle tax to support people with special needs, emphasizing its needs-based and fair targeting.

The political position is dual, encompassing strong advocacy for local interests (specifically the kindergarten fee in Rae municipality) and an active role in advancing financial sector regulation in the Riigikogu. Regarding financial issues, the focus is on market liberalization (instant payments) and guaranteeing essential services, which suggests a pragmatic and results-oriented approach. He/She forcefully opposes political misinformation related to local service charges.

The political focus is on the transposition of European Union financial regulations concerning the access of payment institutions to central bank payment systems. The speaker's position is procedural and neutral, concentrating on communicating the process of the draft law and the resulting consensus decisions. The aim of the draft law is to increase competition and innovation in the payment services market.

The speaker sharply criticizes the government's inaccurate budget planning in the education sector, highlighting massive surpluses at a time when the national budget is in a difficult state. The political stance is strong and assertive, focusing primarily on the effectiveness of government actions and the efficiency of public spending. The necessity of planning finances as precisely as possible is stressed, in order to avoid unnecessary taxes and expenditures in other sectors.

The political focus is on the effective utilization of EU funds to boost the economy during this challenging period. The speaker strongly supports the ongoing effort to commit these funds (i.e., covering them with obligations) and stresses the necessity of finding solutions to mitigate the heavy budgetary strain caused by defense expenditures (ReArm). The overall approach is results-oriented, viewing the ministries' work to date in a positive light.

The political position is moderate and policy-based, focusing on the most judicious use of limited resources given the challenging state budget situation. Emphasis is placed on valuing culture and sport, but there are suspicions regarding the inefficiency of the Cultural Endowment's funding distribution, despite the additional revenue generated by tax increases. Furthermore, significant focus is being placed on processing bills related to financial regulation and banking.

The speaker is focusing on resolving the implementation challenges of the Motor Vehicle Tax Act, supporting the Chancellor of Justice’s proposal to bring the law into constitutional compliance regarding vehicle destruction and the refund of registration fees. He criticizes past policy for excessive spending that resulted in the budget deficit, and fundamentally advocates for a "leaner state": less intervention, fewer subsidies, and lower taxes. He emphasizes that the increase in defense spending (which necessitated raising VAT, income tax, and excise duties) is Putin’s doing, but the motor vehicle tax itself is linked to the budget deficit.

The most striking position is the opposition to the bill seeking to annul the motor vehicle tax, a rejection that the Finance Committee supported. The opposition is strong and justified by the bill’s flaws and lack of substance, with critics accusing the initiator of populism. The political framework is rather procedural and outcome-based, focusing on the quality of lawmaking.

The central theme is the car tax and the level of its taxation, regarding which the speaker positions himself as a fierce opponent of excessively high rates. He opposes the Social Democrats' demands to raise the CO2 thresholds and thereby increase the tax burden on the populace, while rejecting accusations that he is the author of the tax. The political framework is strongly geared toward alleviating the tax burden and criticizing the previous policies of the government partners.

The political position focuses on sharp criticism of the financial decisions made by the previous (EKREIKE) government, specifically regarding the 30 million euro support for Nordica and the Porto Franco scandal. The stance strongly champions fiscal responsibility and opposes excessive state intervention in the private sector, emphasizing the squandering of taxpayer funds. The critique is mainly directed at the inefficiency and unethical behavior demonstrated by the government.

The political position takes a firm stand defending the current bank taxation system and the income tax on dividends. The focus is on results-based policy, emphasizing that the profitability of banks is extremely beneficial for the state and the public, generating significant tax revenues (nearly one billion euros between 2023 and 2028). This position strongly supports the current fiscal structure.

The most crucial issue is the regulation of dangerous pets and ensuring community safety, which is considered extremely important. The speaker strongly supports legislative solutions aimed at assisting victims. The political focus is centered on results, demanding clarity regarding when and with which specific bill the problem will be resolved, while also criticizing political gamesmanship.

The politician strongly supports the original goal of the motor vehicle tax continuation act regarding the streamlining of the register, allowing owners to get rid of phantom vehicles. However, he is strongly opposed to the amendment proposal that exempts vehicles temporarily deleted from the register from the tax, as this jeopardizes the original environmental goals (getting rid of junk cars) and creates social inequality. This stance is strongly policy- and value-based, focusing on the need for equality and the prevention of environmental damage.

The speaker strongly supports the draft legislation, which simplifies and standardizes the taxation of the business account (a 20% rate up to 40,000 euros). The political focus remains on fiscal responsibility and protecting budget revenues, which is why proposals that would have increased the negative impact on the budget were rejected. This stance is clearly policy- and results-based, centered on bringing order to the tax system.

The political emphasis is placed on the difficult situation regarding public finances and the need for significant cost savings, given that expenditures exceed revenues in the state budget. The stance strongly favors fiscal discipline and emphasizes the substantive transparency of proposals put forth by both the government and the opposition. The framing is heavily results-oriented, concentrating on the poor condition of the nation's finances.

This political stance is strongly tied to defending the work of the Finance Committee and ensuring procedural correctness. He/She forcefully opposes the rejection of the bill initiated by Isamaa to repeal the motor vehicle tax, emphasizing that there was no substantive discussion within the committee. He/She criticizes the quality of the opposition's bill initiation and their genuine desire to effect change, prioritizing procedural correctness. The motion to reject the bill received robust support in the committee (7 votes in favor).

The political stance focuses on the details of the State Budget Act and procedural correctness. Specifically, emphasis is placed on confirming the existence of the formula for the local government support and equalization fund within the text of the law. This is a policy- and detail-centric approach that stresses the precision of legislation.

The political stance centers on defending the tax policy, emphasizing the positive impact of abolishing the previous tax hump, which left more net money in the hands of people earning the average wage (such as teachers). This position is strongly policy- and fact-based, defending earlier decisions against the opponent’s accusations. The speaker stresses that certain tax increases, when combined with expanding the income tax-free minimum, can actually bring financial benefit to people.

The political position is primarily procedural, supporting the progression of the Finance Committee's drafts through the Riigikogu and proposing the conclusion of the first reading. Emphasis is placed on the necessity of closing tax schemes within the real estate sector, and the simplification of the business account system—which facilitates immediate tax remittance—is supported. The position is policy- and detail-oriented, focusing on the technical content of the proposed legislative amendments.

The political stance centers on environmental regulation, strongly supporting the introduction of a mandatory collection scheme for old vehicles. The speaker deems this measure crucial for eliminating junk vehicles and requests clarification regarding the implementation mechanisms (the mandate itself, funding, and frequency). The focus is on the execution of the policy and its resulting impact.