Session Profile: Helmen Kütt
Fifteenth Riigikogu, third session, plenary session
2024-05-27
Political Position
The political focus is on social protection and the reduction of inequality and poverty, particularly concerning family caregivers, children, and seniors (65+). The speaker strongly supports the care reform and the strategic objective of ensuring comprehensive support for individuals throughout their entire life course. The political framework is clearly value-based, emphasizing that the ethics of a society are judged by how it supports its weakest members ("no one is left behind").
2 Speeches Analyzed
Topic Expertise
The speaker demonstrates profound expertise in social welfare, the social protection strategy ("Eesti 2035"), and the history of relevant legislation. They highlight specific statistical data, such as the increase in the poverty rate among the elderly from 41.6% to 53.1%. This expertise is substantiated by their personal background, including education in the social field, nearly 20 years of work in local government, and the leadership of the Riigikogu Social Affairs Committee.
2 Speeches Analyzed
Rhetorical Style
The style is formal, respectful, and sincere, balancing the citation of strategic documents and statistics (a logical appeal) with a strong value-based and emotional emphasis. The speaker uses personal credibility to emphasize the sincerity of their words, acknowledging that their thoughts might sound "overly dramatic." The tone is generally supportive and constructive, recognizing the work that has been done.
2 Speeches Analyzed
Activity Patterns
The speaker is active in plenary sessions, asking specific questions and providing comprehensive analyses. They also reference their previous work, including a trip to Finland to study the situation of informal caregivers while serving in the previous government. Furthermore, they point to their active role on the Riigikogu Social Affairs Committee in initiating and implementing several pieces of legislation.
2 Speeches Analyzed
Opposition Stance
The direct criticism is aimed at age-based polarization and discrimination, citing the media coverage of older drivers as an example. Instead of launching attacks against political opponents, a factual error made by colleague Lauri Laats regarding the history of increased benefits for children with disabilities is being corrected; this was more of a historical and procedural correction.
2 Speeches Analyzed
Collaboration Style
The speaker strongly emphasizes the need for cross-party cooperation, asserting that the strategic objective for the sector should be a "cross-party document" and a roadmap. They point to a positive experience of cooperation in the Social Affairs Committee, where a significant draft bill was adopted unanimously.
2 Speeches Analyzed
Regional Focus
There is a strong focus on the role and capacity of local authorities (LAs) in the provision of social services, noting that the care reform represented the largest financial support provided to LAs in the last 30 years. Emphasis is placed on the fact that service accessibility should not depend on the place of residence, and better cooperation is needed within counties or across multiple counties.
2 Speeches Analyzed
Economic Views
Economic perspectives focus on social redistribution and poverty alleviation, especially in households with children and among the elderly. Positive developments highlighted include the increase in maintenance allowance and single-parent benefits, as well as significant financial support provided to local governments for the care reform. The goal is to reduce inequality and poverty.
2 Speeches Analyzed
Social Issues
The primary social issues include the burden placed on informal caregivers, the absence of adequate social guarantees, child protection concerns, and the rapid increase in poverty among the elderly. Emphasis is placed on the necessity of ensuring multifaceted support across the entire life course and tackling the demographic challenge to maintain a stable population. Furthermore, age-based discrimination in the labor market and society is criticized.
2 Speeches Analyzed
Legislative Focus
The legislative focus is on ensuring social guarantees for family caregivers, with the aim of creating a separate bill modeled after the Finnish example. Support is given to the intention to develop amendments to the Child Protection Act and to the ongoing care reform. The speaker highlights their previous role as the chair of the Social Affairs Committee in initiating and adopting the bill to increase benefits for children with disabilities.
2 Speeches Analyzed