By Months: Aivar Sõerd
Total Months: 16
Fully Profiled: 16
10.2025
8 Speeches
Economic policy is heavily focused on developing the capital market and diversifying the market to reduce the Estonian economy's reliance on banking. Support is given to streamlining regulatory requirements (reducing the administrative burden, raising the issuance threshold to 12 million) in order to facilitate business financing via the stock exchange and various funds.
09.2025
6 Speeches
Advocates for more active management of central bank assets and risk mitigation through increasing the share of gold, citing its high returns. Supports bringing financial regulation into line with international standards and emphasizes technical precision in legislation (e.g., requirements for green bonds). Also demonstrates sensitivity regarding the methodology for valuing real estate used as collateral for consumer credit agreements.
06.2025
2 Speeches
Economic perspectives highlight the critical nature of productivity growth and call for strict fiscal discipline. The speaker criticizes the lack of budget transparency, particularly concerning operational cost savings within the Ministry of Social Affairs, and expresses concern over the declining trend in labor productivity, while clearly supporting the achievement of strategic objectives.
05.2025
12 Speeches
The speaker supports fiscal responsibility and opposes unfunded tax cuts that would harm the state treasury. He emphasizes the need to improve the investment environment to facilitate investment in productive technologies and supports improving regulations (concerning derivative and repo transactions) to enhance the competitiveness of Estonian financial institutions and large enterprises.
04.2025
14 Speeches
The speaker opposes changing the tax system based on short-term favorable economic conditions, stressing the necessity of stability and predictability. It is noted that the banking sector already bears a higher tax burden (18% advance income tax) compared to the rest of the business sector. The priority should be a robust banking sector and tax policy that aligns with the constitution, rather than generating extraordinary revenue.
02.2025
9 Speeches
Prefers a transparent and predictable tax system that encourages entrepreneurship and investment. It opposes extraordinary and high taxes (such as the 50% solidarity tax), which could damage the economic climate and hinder the attraction of investments. It emphasizes that banks are major taxpayers and their profits are cyclical.
01.2025
3 Speeches
The economic views focus on the transparency and accountability of public finances. The speaker demands a detailed breakdown of expenditures, particularly operational costs (IT, rent, materials), and criticizes solutions that fail to make the budget transparent. He notes that the revenue side is already largely transparent.
12.2024
8 Speeches
Economic perspectives emphasize fiscal prudence and transparency in budget execution. The speaker affirms that the state's accounting is in good order, but calls for better utilization of performance indicators when formulating fiscal policy. He/She is critical of the reallocation of budgetary resources that bypasses parliamentary oversight.
11.2024
6 Speeches
Economic perspectives support flexibility in financial regulation to encourage investments, specifically by expanding the list of financial assets eligible for the investment account to include crypto assets and crowdfunding instruments. They are also strong proponents of fiscal discipline and cost-based budgeting, criticizing the inefficiency in the use of state funds and the high administrative costs associated with activity-based budgeting.
10.2024
13 Speeches
It supports a stable tax environment and warns that taxation should not be driven by temporarily favorable economic conditions. It stresses that banks already pay substantial income tax (advance corporate income tax on earned profits, which has increased manifold) and that, ultimately, all taxes are paid by the consumer. It warns that introducing a bank tax will diminish Estonia's appeal to financial investors.
09.2024
1 Speeches
Economic perspectives emphasize fiscal discipline and cost savings within public administration. The speaker supports relocating the ministry to more modest premises in order to achieve significant savings, which signals support for austerity measures.
07.2024
1 Speeches
Economic views relate to the prioritization of public sector spending and the redistribution of resources among local governments. The speaker is demanding clear criteria for how the state should decide which local investments (e.g., a community center) to stimulate and which ones (e.g., landscaping) not to.
06.2024
2 Speeches
Economic views focus on financial regulation and pension systems. The speaker is skeptical about the results of deregulating the second pillar of the pension system, as it failed to lead to the expected growth in the number of independent investors. He supports allowing crypto assets to be held in investment accounts, provided they are adequately monitored and regulated by licensed service providers.
05.2024
12 Speeches
He advocates for fiscal prudence and is skeptical of new taxes that might prove ineffective or whose administrative costs have been underestimated. He emphasizes the importance of economic cycles, noting that the period of high profitability for banks is coming to an end due to the decline in Euribor and the increase in interest expenses on deposits. He expresses concern about the rapid growth of Estonia's general government debt, especially when compared to the positive trends seen in other Eurozone countries.
03.2024
4 Speeches
The economic outlook focuses on corporate taxation and fiscal risks. The speaker is concerned that Estonia's use of the derogation when implementing the minimum income tax directive could result in a loss of tax revenue for other countries if the effective tax rate does not meet the full 15% threshold. He/She analyzes in detail the mechanisms for adjusting taxable income (labor costs, fixed assets) and notes that an increase in the income tax rate may reduce the incentive to pay dividends.
01.2024
1 Speeches
The economic views lean heavily towards fiscal discipline and efficiency, as the speaker strongly criticizes the costs associated with creating additional administrative burdens and unnecessary job positions. He/She opposes the growth of bureaucracy that provides no tangible value to Estonia.