By Plenary Sessions: Maris Lauri

The speaker refers to a previous cooperation offer in which the Centre Party and Isamaa refused to support or merge their proposals with the already adopted Bill 511, thereby demonstrating the opponents' rejection of substantive engagement. Cooperation is viewed as possible only if it leads to a meaningful and well-thought-out outcome.

The collaborative style emphasizes that the budget is a compromise among three parties, and the constitution requires joint effort. The constructive input of the opposition is acknowledged to a limited extent—citing, for instance, the change in funding for the Estonian Book Year—but the preference is for substantive debate rather than irresponsible behavior.

The collaborative approach was open to stakeholders (including the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and trade unions) and the Ministry of Finance, with whom the proposed amendments were discussed and prepared. The committee's decisions concerning the substantive specifics of the draft legislation largely received consensus support. However, the proposals put forth by Isamaa did not receive support from the committee.