Chair of the European Union Affairs Committee Liisa Pakosta welcomed the decision of the Committee to make Estonia’s position regarding packaging waste considerably more ambitious. “On the basis of today’s decision of the Committee, Estonia will go to the negotiations with the position that the general objective of Member States could be to reduce packaging waste 15% already by 2035 instead of by 2040,” Pakosta said. She added that the Committee also amended the position regarding excessive packaging, emphasising that there should be as little empty space in packaging as possible. “The current over-packaging and wasteful use of packaging is taking place at the expense of our children and the environment we all live in.”
Speaking of the targets for reuse of packaging for wine, Deputy Chair of the Committee Maria Jufereva-Skuratovski said that it would be reasonable if the countries producing wine collected as many wine bottles as possible and reused them. She added that the appropriate target for Estonia and other countries that do not have wine industry was that as many bottles as possible were to be placed in containers for glass packaging so that they could be used for producing new bottles.
According to the European Union initiative, Member States have to encourage wider implementation of the systems for re-use, the economic operators will be obliged to reduce packaging and to avoid unnecessary packaging, and it is planned to prohibit misleading packages that aim to increase the perceived volume of the product with the help of, for example, double bottoms.
To put an end to unnecessary packaging, the initiative proposes, for example, to restrict the use of single use packaging for serving food and drinks within the premises of cafes and restaurants, as well as the use of mini shampoo bottles and other small packaging in hotels, and the individual packaging of fruit and vegetables. According to the initiative, fast food chains have to package 20% of food in recyclable packaging by 2030.
Adviser of the Environmental Management Department of the Ministry of the Environment Kätlin Roose participated in the sitting of the Committee.
For more information, please contact: Liisa Pakosta, phone +372 502 6191
Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madise made a proposal to bring the Social Tax Act, the Occupational Health and Safety Act and the Health Insurance Act into conformity with the Constitution in the regard that they do not allow the employer to pay voluntary sickness benefit to pregnant employees.
In Madise’s opinion, the provisions that do not ensure that, in the event of sickness, pregnant employees have the right to a replacement income which is at least equivalent to that of other employees are in conflict with the Constitution. The Chancellor of Justice made a proposal to the Riigikogu to bring the relevant provisions of these Acts into conformity with the Constitution.
The Constitutional Committee and the Social Affairs Committee supported the proposal of the Chancellor of Justice that the provisions in the Acts that currently do not allow the employer to pay voluntary sickness benefit to pregnant employees be brought into conformity with the Constitution.
77 members of the Riigikogu supported the proposal of the Chancellor of Justice.
The President of the Riigikogu instructed the Social Affairs Committee to initiate a bill to bring the provisions of the Act into conformity with the Constitution.
The Riigikogu passed a Resolution
The Resolution of the Riigikogu “Appointment of Members of the Supervisory Board of the National Library of Estonia” (221 OE), submitted by the Cultural Affairs Committee, provides for the appointment of recognised experts of the operating areas of the National Library of Estonia Priit Pirsko and Raivo Ruusalepp as members of the Supervisory Board of the National Library of Estonia.
The Supervisory Board of the National Library of Estonia is the highest directing body of the national library which is composed of seven members. Three members of the Riigikogu and two recognised experts of the operating areas of the national library are appointed to the Board by the Riigikogu on the proposal of the Cultural Affairs Committee with the term of authority of four years. In addition, the Minister of Culture appoints a member to the Supervisory Board, and the Secretary General of the Riigikogu is a member of the Supervisory Board by virtue of their office.
69 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of passing the Resolution.
The Riigikogu concluded the first reading of two Bills
The Bill on Amendments to the State Budget for 2023 Act (214 SE), initiated by the Government, contains two types of amendments. First, the proposals arising from the reorganisations in ministries, which are connected with the Act on Amendments to the Government of the Republic Act and Other Acts. According to it, as of 1 July 2023, the Ministry of the Environment will be reorganised into the Ministry of Climate, the Ministry of Rural Affairs will be reorganised into the Ministry of Regional Affairs, and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications will be reorganised into the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Information Technology. Amendments will also be made in the areas of government of ministries. Second, proposals to amend the budget have been received from the areas of government. They were submitted to the Ministry of Finance this April.
The reorganisation of ministries will enable more effective division of roles and exchange of information between the governmental authorities connected with the fulfilment of strategic objectives. This will allow for more comprehensive provision of policy solutions and will increase the synergy between the areas of government. The reorganisation of the ministries is also based on a more general principle of the state reform which is to reduce duplication in state offices and to improve the quality and availability of public services. The reorganisation will also contribute to revising the state budget expenditure and to finding saving opportunities.
The Bill is in conformity with the State Budget Act under which, in order to amend the state budget without amending the total amount of funds, the Government may initiate a draft State Budget Amendment Act not later than two months before the end of the budgetary year.
During the debate, Aivar Kokk (Isamaa) and Martin Helme (Estonian Conservative People’s Party) took the floor.
The deadline for submission of motions to amend is 12 noon on 8 June.
The Bill on Amendments to the Income Tax Act and the Act on Amendments to the Social Welfare Act and the Income Tax Act (215 SE), initiated by the Government, will amend the principles for the allocation of income tax to local authorities. The Bill proposes that the income tax allocated from the state pension of a resident natural person in 2024 be increased to 2.5 per cent. At the same time, the income tax allocated from other taxable income – except for the mandatory and supplementary funded pension and gains derived from the transfer of property – will be reduced to 11.89 per cent.
During the debate, Aivar Kokk (Isamaa), Anti Allas (Social Democratic Party), Annely Akkermann (Reform Party) and Vadim Belobrovtsev (Centre Party) took the floor.
Isamaa Parliamentary Group and the Estonian Centre Party Group moved to reject the Bill at the first reading. The result of voting: 29 votes in favour and 51 against. The motion was not supported. The first reading of the Bill was concluded. The deadline for submission of motions to amend is 12 noon on 8 June.
The Riigikogu rejected a Bill
The Bill on Amendments to the Aliens Act and the Higher Education Act (3 SE), initiated by the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Group, was intended to limit the short-term employment as seasonal workers in Estonia to 183 days within 365 consecutive days and to provide for a requirement of two-year residence in Estonia for aliens in the case where an alien has settled in Estonia for study purposes and wishes to invite his or her spouse to reside in Estonia. It was also intended to establish a procedure under which aliens would be issued temporary residence permits only for full-time employment, to repeal the specifications in place for start-ups and information and communications specialists, to establish the requirement to reimburse student expenses for students from third countries, etc.
During the debate, Margit Sutrop (Reform Party), Igor Taro (Estonia 200) and Henn Põlluaas (Estonian Conservative People’s Party) took the floor.
The Constitutional Committee moved to reject the Bill at the first reading. The result of voting: 48 votes in favour and 17 against. The motion was supported. The Bill was dropped from the legislative proceedings.
The Riigikogu heard replies to three interpellations
Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madise replied to the interpellation concerning online elections and the lack of legal clarity regarding them (No. 240), submitted by members of the Riigikogu.
The Minister of Justice Kalle Laanet replied to the interpellations concerning a legitimate expectation (No. 70) and deceitful policy (No. 87), submitted by members of the Riigikogu.
Video recordings of the sittings of the Riigikogu can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/riigikogu. (Please note that the recording will be uploaded with a delay.)
Hussar noted that both Estonia and Lithuania had been at the forefront of providing comprehensive assistance to Ukraine and of raising the cost of aggression to Russia. “It is necessary to continue the close cooperation between Estonia and Lithuania in supporting Ukraine on its path to the EU and NATO,” he underlined.
Speaking of the upcoming NATO Summit, Hussar said that in the current complicated security policy situation, all NATO member countries should contribute to increasing their defence capability. “Two per cent of GDP for defence spending should not be a target for NATO member states but a minimum level,” he said.
At the meeting, Hussar and Nausėda also discussed the current state of regional infrastructure projects. “We hope that Rail Baltic will be completed as soon as possible, and that Estonians and Lithuanians will soon be able to travel between the two countries using a comfortable and fast train connection,” the President of the Riigikogu said.
In Vilnius, Hussar also met with his Lithuanian counterpart Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen, with whom he discussed the relations between the two countries, the security situation of the region, the implementation of regional infrastructure projects and supporting Ukraine.
Hussar was in Vilnius to attend the meeting of Speakers of parliaments of NATO member countries, where increasing defence spending and defence investments by member countries, strengthening deterrence and defence posture, and plans for long-term support for Ukraine were discussed in preparation for the NATO Summit in July. Today, the Speakers visited the General Silvestras Žukauskas Training Area in Pabradė.
Within the framework of the meeting of Speakers, Hussar met with Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk, Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons of the UK Rosie Winterton and Vice-President of the National Assembly of France Valérie Rabault. He also had a meeting with the representatives of the Estonian community in Vilnius.
Hussar was accompanied on the visit by Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu Marko Mihkelson and Chairman of the Estonia-Lithuania Parliamentary Friendship Group of the Riigikogu, Deputy Head of the Estonian delegation to the Baltic Assembly Enn Eesmaa.
Tomorrow, 4 June is the 139th anniversary of the national flag of Estonia. On this occasion, the Board of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) and the Estonian Flag Association invite everyone to the flag raising ceremony in the Governor’s Garden at Toompea this Sunday at 7 a.m. From 11 a.m. until 5 p.m., it will be possible to visit the Tall Hermann Tower.
The national anthem of Estonia will be played to accompany the raising of the flag. The representatives of Tallinn English College and Jakob Hurt Society for Popular Education in Põlvamaa will assist at the raising of the flag.
President of the Riigikogu Lauri Hussar and Chairman of the Estonian Flag Association Jüri Trei will make speeches at the ceremony. Archbishop of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church Urmas Viilma will say a blessing.
The flag guards of the Guard Battalion, the Estonian Defence League, the Women’s Home Defence, Young Eagles, Home Daughters, Scouts, Guides, as well as schools and academic and patriotic organisations will attend the ceremony in the Governor’s Garden.
The Estonian Military Orchestra and the choirs of the Estonian Female Song Society will perform at the ceremony. The choirs will sing “Hoia, Jumal, Eestit” (“God Save Estonia”; Juhan Aavik, lyrics Aleksander Leopold Raudkepp) and “Eesti lipp” (“Flag of Estonia”; Enn Võrk, lyrics Martin Lipp).
The Tall Hermann Tower will be open to visitors from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. In order to ensure smooth entrance, visitors will be distributed free tickets showing their time of entry to the tower. Tours will start every full and half hour. The tower is narrow, and therefore group sizes will be limited.
The National Flag Day is celebrated on the anniversary of the consecration of the blue-black-white flag of the Estonian Students’ Society. The first flag was made in spring 1884. It was blessed and consecrated at Otepää parsonage in South Estonia on 4 June. This year we celebrate the 139th anniversary of the consecration of the national flag of Estonia.
The Chairmen emphasised the importance of fully implementing the decisions made in Bucharest on Ukraine’s future accession to the Alliance, and of permanently eradicating grey security areas in Europe, as well as the current uncertainty surrounding Ukraine’s NATO membership.
“We draw attention to the fact that Ukraine’s membership in NATO would consolidate sustainable peace not only in Ukraine but also in Europe as a whole, demonstrating that Russia has no veto power over NATO’s enlargement, that Ukraine is free to choose which security and defence organizations to align with, and that Ukraine is not in Russia’s sphere of influence,” they stated and added that Ukraine’s victory over Russia’s aggression and Ukraine’s membership in NATO would help to maintain the rules-based international order.
The Chairmen noted that the Euro-Atlantic values that unite NATO member countries were currently being defended and protected, first and foremost, by the heroic resistance of the Ukrainian people to the aggressor. They called Ukraine a security provider in the current situation and stressed that Ukraine’s membership in NATO would significantly strengthen the Alliance. Ukraine’s membership in NATO would also be far more effective and less costly than the current defence assistance currently provided to Ukraine.
“Therefore, we call NATO and its Heads of States and Governments to make the NATO Vilnius Summit to create a clear path for Ukraine accession to NATO and give clear and strong security guarantees for Ukraine. We are confident that Ukraine’s NATO membership would greatly contribute to the Alliance’s security and would help the Russian society to finally get rid of the imperial dreams, which Putin is using to consolidate his regime,” declared the Chairmen, also calling for an increasingly deeper integration of Ukraine into NATO’s structures and processes prior to Ukraine’s accession to NATO.
The joint statement was made before the meeting of Speakers of parliaments of NATO member countries and was signed by the heads of Foreign Affairs Committees from the parliaments of Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Romania, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and United States. The Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu Marko Mihkelson signed the statement on behalf of Estonia.
Hussar said that Estonia’s priority was to ensure firm support for Ukraine at the NATO Summit, which includes taking a step forward on the issue of Ukraine’s NATO membership. “In order to ensure peace in Europe, Ukraine must become a member of both the European Union and NATO. As the plenary of the Riigikogu underlined in its recent Statement, we expect the NATO Summit in Vilnius in July to issue an invitation to Ukraine to join the Alliance and to formulate concrete actions that would enable the country to integrate quickly into NATO,” he added.
Hussar pointed out that in addition to political support, Ukraine needed constant economic and military aid from its allies. “At the same time, we need to continue raising the cost of aggression for Russia through the imposition and implementation of sanctions as well as using of Russia’s frozen assets for Ukraine’s reconstruction. We also support the establishing of a special international tribunal to prosecute those responsible for the crime of aggression against Ukraine,” Hussar said.
The meeting of NATO Speakers begins on Friday with a debate on global challenges and the future of NATO. Increasing defence spending and investments of NATO countries, strengthening deterrence and defence posture, and plans for long-term support for Ukraine will also be discussed. On Saturday, the Speakers will visit the General Silvestras Žukauskas Training Area in Pabradė.
In Vilnius, Hussar will meet with President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda and his Lithuanian counterpart Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen to discuss the security situation of the region and the relations between the two countries, as well as supporting Ukraine and cooperation in implementing regional infrastructure projects.
Within the framework of the meeting of Speakers, Hussar will also have bilateral meetings with Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk and Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons of the UK Rosie Winterton. The President of the Riigikogu will also meet with the representatives of the Estonian community in Vilnius.
Hussar is accompanied on the visit by Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu Marko Mihkelson and Chairman of the Estonia-Lithuania Parliamentary Friendship Group, Deputy Head of the Estonian delegation to the Baltic Assembly Enn Eesmaa.
Sunday, 4 June is the 139th anniversary of the national flag of Estonia. The Board of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) and the Estonian Flag Association invite everyone to the flag raising ceremony in the Governor’s Garden at Toompea at 7 a.m. From 11 a.m. until 5 p.m., it will be possible to visit the Tall Hermann Tower.
The flag will be raised while of the national anthem of Estonia is played. The representatives of Tallinn English College and Jakob Hurt Society for Popular Education in Põlvamaa will assist at the raising of the flag.
President of the Riigikogu Lauri Hussar and Chairman of the Estonian Flag Association Jüri Trei will make speeches at the ceremony. Archbishop of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church Urmas Viilma will say the words of blessing.
The flag guards of the Guard Battalion, Defence League, Women’s Home Defence, Young Eagles, Home Daughters, Scouts, Guides, schools, and academic and patriotic organisations will attend the ceremony in the Governor’s Garden.
The Estonian Military Orchestra and the choirs of the Estonian Female Song Society will perform at the ceremony. The choirs will sing “Hoia, Jumal, Eestit” (”God Save Estonia”, lyrics by Aleksander Leopold Raudkepp) and “Eesti lipp” (“Flag of Estonia”, lyrics by Martin Lipp).
Tall Hermann Tower is open to visitors from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. In order to ensure smooth entrance, visitors will be distributed free tickets showing the time of entry to the tower. The tours start every full and half hour. The tower is narrow, therefore group sizes are limited.
The National Flag Day is celebrated on the anniversary of the consecration of the blue-black-white flag of the Estonian Students’ Society. The first flag was made in spring 1884 and was blessed and consecrated at Otepää parsonage on 4 June. This year we celebrate the 139th anniversary of the consecration of the national flag of Estonia.
Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Marko Mihkelson underlined that it was the duty of the international community to hold to account those who had planned, prepared, launched and committed the crime of aggression against Ukraine. “The political and military leadership, armed forces, and intelligence and security services of the Russian Federation have committed the gravest international crimes against the people of Ukraine for which they will have to bear full personal responsibility. Therefore, a special international tribunal will have to be established under the auspices of the UN General Assembly, and the establishment and launch of such a tribunal should be made a priority of Estonia’s foreign policy agenda,” he said.
Mihkelson said that members of the Riigikogu from all parliamentary groups wished the draft Statement to be ready and submitted for parliamentary proceedings next week, so that it could be adopted before the end of the Spring Session. A draft statement of the Riigikogu can be submitted by not less than one-fifth (at least 21) of the members of the Riigikogu.
Since the beginning of last year, the Riigikogu has adopted six Statements and one Communication to condemn Russia’s activities and to express support to Ukraine. Most recently, on 17 May, the Riigikogu passed the Statement submitted by 95 members of the Riigikogu in support of Ukraine’s wish to join NATO as the only way to ensure a rules-based world order, lasting peace and the security of the democratic countries of Europe.
NordenBladet —This year’s largest naval exercise in the Baltic Sea, Baltops 23, will begin on Saturday in Tallinn. More than 30 NATO warships and nearly 3,700 sailors will arrive in the capital in the coming days for the exercise. “This year’s Baltops is a historic event for us, because there has …
Chair of the Committee Liisa Pakosta stated that the protection of surface and ground water was very important and the objective of treatment of urban wastewaters was good, but it was still necessary to see that the costs caused by the Directive would be proportional with the benefits it brought to the environment and human health.
“It is known that the construction of a pipeline involves large costs to local governments and the water companies, which could be unreasonable in sparsely populated areas. We have many households that are not connected to sanitation network. We found in the Committee that if people have no money for connecting to central sanitation system, it cannot be requested of them,” Pakosta said. “Of course, it would be good if everyone had the possibility to connect to the sewerage pipeline, but it would be reasonable if it were accompanied by support from the EU structural funds. Otherwise, property owners may not have enough money to build the necessary pipelines to connect to the central system, even if the state and local government find the money to build the sewerage pipeline.”
The Committee decided amend the position of the Government and make it more specific. According to the position approved at the sitting of the Committee, Estonia is against the proposal to extend the scope of application of the Directive to drainage areas with population of less than 2000 people. “We think that Member States must retain the possibility to decide for themselves how to collect wastewater in smaller settlements,” Pakosta said. “We also believe that it should continue to be taken into account whether the wastewater treatment plants are located in cold or warm climates. We do not support the proposal that new wastewater treatment plants should be again replaced when the new requirements come into force.”
Estonia supports the proposal that the parameters relevant for public health in urban waste water should be regularly monitored across Europe. We support the improvement of wastewater surveillance and the objective of reducing the release into water of micro-pollutants, such as pharmaceuticals and cosmetics residues. Estonia considers it important that after the adoption of amendments, there would be at least 18 months for their transposition.
The European Union Affairs Committee heard the opinion of the Environment Committee and decided to approve the positions of the Government on reviewing the ground water and surface water pollutants lists and on reviewing the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive as amended.
At the sitting, Advisers Anni Mandel and Kersti Türk as well as Chief Specialist Margus Korsjukov of the Water Department of the Ministry of the Environment gave an overview of the planned amendments and the positions submitted by the Government and replied to the numerous questions of the members of the Committee.
For more information, please contact: Liisa Pakosta, phone +372 502 6191