Board of the Riigikogu approved the number of members and allocated seats in standing committees

NordenBladet — The Board of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) approved the number of members in its ten standing committees, and decided how many seats each faction would have in the committees.

The allocation of seats in the committees depends on the size of the factions and the proposals made by the factions. It is also necessary to take into account that each member of the Riigikogu can belong to only one committee, and the members of the Board of the Riigikogu cannot serve on standing committees, with the exception of the European Union Affairs Committee.

When distributing the seats in committees between the factions, the Board of the Riigikogu also had to keep in mind that the composition of the committees should reflect the true correlation of political forces in the Riigikogu, or the proportions of the coalition and the opposition. The Board will approve the specific membership of the committees after receiving the proposals from the factions.

The Environment Committee (9 members) will have 3 members from the Reform Party Faction, 2 members from the Centre Party Faction, 2 members from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 1 member from the Faction Isamaa and 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction.

The Cultural Affairs Committee (9 members) will have 3 members from the Reform Party Faction, 2 members from the Centre Party Faction, 2 members from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 1 member from the Faction Isamaa and 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction.

The Rural Affairs Committee (9 members) will have 3 members from the Reform Party Faction, 3 members from the Centre Party Faction, 1 member from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 1 member from the Faction Isamaa and 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction.

The Economic Affairs Committee (9 members) will have 3 members from the Reform Party Faction, 2 members from the Centre Party Faction, 2 members from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 1 member from the Faction Isamaa and 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction.

The Constitutional Committee (9 members) will have 3 members from the Reform Party Faction, 2 members from the Centre Party Faction, 2 members from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 1 member from the Faction Isamaa and 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction.

The Finance Committee (11 members) will have 4 members from the Reform Party Faction, 3 members from the Centre Party Faction, 2 members from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 1 member from the Faction Isamaa and 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction.

The National Defence Committee (11 members) will have 4 members from the Reform Party Faction, 3 members from the Centre Party Faction, 2 members from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 1 member from the Faction Isamaa and 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction.

The Social Affairs Committee (9 members) will have 3 members from the Reform Party Faction, 3 members from the Centre Party Faction, 1 member from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 1 member from the Faction Isamaa and 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction.

The Foreign Affairs Committee (13 members) will have 4 members from the Reform Party Faction, 3 members from the Centre Party Faction, 2 members from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 2 members from the Faction Isamaa, 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction, and there will be 1 seat for independent member.

The Legal Affairs Committee (9 members) will have 3 members from the Reform Party Faction, 2 members from the Centre Party Faction, 2 members from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, 1 member from the Faction Isamaa and 1 member from the Social Democratic Party Faction.

The membership and the allocation of seats between the factions in the European Union Affairs Committee will be determined later. Under the Riigikogu Rules of Procedure and Internal Rules Act, the European Union Affairs Committee must have not less than15 members, including at least one member from each of the other standing committees.

Select committees are formed after the Riigikogu has passed the relevant resolutions. The previous Riigikogu had the Security Authorities Surveillance Committee, the Anti-Corruption Select Committee and the State Budget Control Select Committee.

Source: Parliament of Estonia