On Monday, President of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Jüri Ratas will attend the meeting of the Speakers of the Parliaments of the Baltic States and Poland in Warsaw, where enhancing the parliamentary cooperation between the four countries in the current complicated security situation will be discussed.
According to Ratas, Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has cardinally changed the security environment in Europe and therefore close cooperation between the countries of our region is particularly important. “Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland have supported Ukraine in every way and have actively worked to put increasing political and economic pressure on Russia, thereby raising the cost of aggression and paving the way for Ukraine’s victory,” he said.
Ratas pointed out that since Russia had not yet lost the war, it was necessary to continue working on the international arena, and it was wise to do this in an effective and even better coordinated cooperation between the countries of the region. He added that it was also necessary to act together to strengthen the security as well as connectivity, energy independence and economic cooperation in the region.
The development of cooperation between countries as well as between parliaments to respond to the current geopolitical threats will be discussed at the meeting of the Speakers of Parliaments on Monday. The opportunities of parliamentary diplomacy to influence strategic issues at the international level will be addressed separately. At the end of the meeting, the Speakers from the four countries plan to adopt a joint declaration.
Besides Ratas, Edvards Smiltēns from the Parliament of Latvia, Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen from the Parliament of Lithuania, and Elżbieta Witek from the Parliament of Poland will attend the meeting in Warsaw.
Today the first reading of one Bill was on the agenda of the Riigikogu plenary assembly, and it was dropped from the legislative proceedings.
The Bill on the Denunciation of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction (726 SE), initiated by members of the Riigikogu Ants Laaneots, Alar Laneman, Leo Kunnas, Kalle Grünthal, Henn Põlluaas, Helle-Moonika Helme, Rene Kokk, Riho Breivel, Merry Aart, Mart Helme, Kert Kingo, Martin Helme, Uno Kaskpeit, Jaak Valge, Paul Puustusmaa, Peeter Ernits, Anti Poolamets, Siim Pohlak, Ruuben Kaalep and Urmas Reitelmann, did not passe the first reading. The aim was that Estonia would exit the Ottawa convention which prohibits the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines and requests their destruction.
The explanatory memorandum to the Bill states that it is no longer in Estonia’s national interests to adhere to the requirements of the Ottawa convention, and it is weakening our defence capability. The explanatory memorandum states that, in the current new situation, Estonia is forced to do everything in its power to strengthen its military national defence. At the same time, Estonia cannot allow that, in the event of war, other countries who have refrained from acceding to the Ottawa convention could use anti-personnel mines in the Estonian territory while Estonia cannot do that.
The explanatory memorandum also points out that, after denunciation of the convention, Estonia will be able to make a unilateral commitment to refrain from selling anti-personnel mines and otherwise transferring them to other countries and to declare that it will not use anti-personnel mines outside its territory.
The Riigikogu ratified the Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction in March 2004, a few weeks before Estonia was accepted as a full member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The Ottawa convention entered into force for the Republic of Estonia on 1 November 2004.
During the debate, Marko Mihkelson (Reform Party), Raimond Kaljulaid (Social Democratic Party), Alar Laneman (Estonian Conservative People’s Party) and Heiki Hepner (Isamaa) took the floor on behalf of their factions.
The Reform Party Faction moved to reject the Bill. 30 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the motion and 21 were against. The Bill was dropped from the proceedings.
President of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Jüri Ratas and Prime Minister of Croatia Andrej Plenković discussed further support for Ukraine at their meeting today, confirming strong support for the establishment of an international special tribunal to investigate Russia’s crime of aggression.
Ratas said at the meeting that Estonia and Croatia shared the same values and that the bilateral cooperation of the two countries in both the European Union and NATO was excellent. Ratas underlined that the unity of the Western countries was especially relevant in the current complicated security situation.
“It is very important that we also stand united in our positions on the war of aggression Russia has launched in Ukraine. We will do our utmost to support Ukraine in every way we can and to offer them political, military and humanitarian aid. We also strongly support the establishment of an international special tribunal and consider it important to continue with imposing sanctions on Russia in order to raise the cost of aggression,” Ratas said.
The President of the Riigikogu highlighted the accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO as a positive step. In his opinion, it will strengthen security in the entire alliance, especially on NATO’s eastern flank. He specially thanked Croatia for its cooperation in the NATO Cyber Defence Centre in Tallinn and welcomed the country’s recent accession to the eurozone and the Schengen area. Ratas also considered it necessary to continue close contacts between the Parliaments of Estonia and Croatia.
At the meeting, Ratas and Plenković also spoke about the challenges relating to inflation and ways to alleviate energy costs, and discussed the situation West Balkan in a broader context.
At today’s sitting, the Riigikogu concluded the second reading of the Bill that aims to reduce the minimum age limit for security service officers by a year in order that 18-year-old people could assume employment in the security activities sector.
According to the Bill on Amendments to the Security Act (629 SE), initiated by the Social Democratic Party Faction and Member of the Riigikogu Raimond Kaljulaid, people of 18 years of age could also work as security guards and guards. Under the current Act, security guards must be at least 19 years of age. The explanatory memorandum notes that the growth of security firms is limited because of labour shortage which is aggravated by the minimum age limit for operating as a security guard or guard.
During the debate, Tarmo Kruusimäe from Faction Isamaa, Raimond Kaljulaid on behalf of the Social Democratic Party Faction and Kalle Grünthal and Peeter Ernits from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party took the floor.
Three Bills passed the first reading
The Bill on Amendments to the Military Service Act and Amendments to Other Associated Acts (754 SE), initiated by the Government, prescribes that the state will be able to pay compensation to cover the interest costs of housing loans of conscripts. Since conscripts cannot take a full payment holiday in the case of housing loans, housing loan interests will be compensated to them during their conscript service. According to the Bill, an allowance will also be paid to people who obtain the right to drive motor vehicles of category B before they enter the conscript service as this allows for the basic skill training to be provided to them over a shorter period of time. The amount of the one-off allowance will be 1000 euro.
According to the Bill, the compensation for the acquisition of the personal equipment of active servicemen will be simplified. A procedure will be established for active servicemen according to which they will acquire certain items of clothing through specific online shops, and they will be paid compensation for that every year. At the same time, the Income Tax Act will be amended by adding a provision under which the compensation for the acquisition of clothing equipment will not be subject to income tax.
Besides that, the regulation concerning the protection of war graves will be updated and the decision-making level concerning war graves will be brought from minister’s level to a lower level in order to make the implementation of the Act more flexible and operative. With the amendments to the Heritage Conservation Act, the provision on the termination of double protection of war graves will be included in the Act.
During the debate, Mati Raidma took the floor on behalf of the Reform Party Faction.
The Bill on Amendments to the State Pension Insurance Act (724 SE), initiated by the Estonian Centre Party Faction, prescribes the establishment of widow’s pension, which, according to the Bill, would be granted to a person who is of old age pension age and whose spouse, to whom the person has been married for at least ten years, has died by the time of old age pension. According to the Bill, the widow’s pension will be granted for life, and it will be equal to the pension calculated for the dead spouse. The widow’s pension will not be granted where it will be lower than the pension of the widowed person. According to the Bill, the procedure for the application for widow’s pension and the list of the documents to be submitted will be established by a regulation of the minister in charge of the policy sector.
Aivar Kokk from Faction Isamaa took the floor during the debate.
The Bill on Amendments to the Value-Added Tax Act and the Medicinal Products Act (757 SE), initiated by members of the Riigikogu Viktoria Ladõnskaja-Kubits, Priit Sibul, Heiki Hepner, Andres Metsoja, Helir-Valdor Seeder, Helle-Moonika Helme, Riho Breivel, Peeter Ernits, Paul Puustusmaa, Jaak Valge, Kalle Grünthal, Uno Kaskpeit, Leo Kunnas, Kersti Sarapuu, Anastassia Kovalenko-Kõlvart, Jaanus Karilaid, Taavi Aas, Maria Jufereva-Skuratovski, Alar Laneman, Tarmo Tamm, Jaak Aab, Helmen Kütt, Mihhail Korb, Aivar Kokk, Hele Everaus, Tarmo Kruusimäe and Üllar Saaremäe.
The Bill is intended to amend the Value-Added Tax Act by including a new five-per cent reduced VAT rate. According to the Bill, it will be possible for the minister in charge of the policy sector to establish by a regulation a list of medicinal products intended to treat cancer and other malignant tumours that will be subject to a five-per cent VAT-rate. The Bill is also intended to give the Estonian Health Insurance Fund the right to reimburse to non-profit organisations, foundations and religious associations the amount they pay in VAT when they use donations to buy medicinal products intended to treat cancer and other malignant tumours.
Maria Jufereva-Skuratovski from the Centre Party Faction took the floor during the debate.
The video recording of the sitting will be available to watch later onthe Riigikogu YouTubechannel. (Please note that the recording will be uploaded with a delay.)
Akkermann noted that the achievement of the strategic objectives of “Estonia 2035” had to be supported by fiscal policy decisions, and therefore the process of drafting it had been tied to the process of drafting the budget strategy at the level of the Government of the Republic.
Akkermann emphasised that budgetary balance was a national fiscal policy measure to curb inflation. “Without a responsible fiscal policy, it is impossible to manage any other sphere of life responsibly, in a stable and balanced manner, making strategic plans and adhering to them,” the minister said.
In her words, it is true that the measures to mitigate the effects of the pandemic crisis and the war started by Russia have taken the budget into an unprecedented deficit by today. “Decreasing the deficit and returning to a fiscally sustainable path is undoubtedly important in the interests of achieving the longer-term national objectives,” Akkermann noted. She explained that, in the strategy and action plan of “Estonia 2035”, changes and reforms had been agreed upon that were necessary to resolve challenges and to comply with government-based recommendations and to achieve long-term strategic objectives. “We are using various sources to implement these reforms and changes, both European Union support funds and tax revenues, trying to find the best combination and combined effect between funding sources and thereby to restore the achievement of the objectives set,” the minister said.
She explained that, by way of a very large rounding and generalisation, it could be said that the following allocations from European Union funds had been planned in the following financial period, that is, 2021–2027: 1.78 billion euro for the implementation of the Green Deal; 439 million towards supporting the digital transition; 1.35 billion into transport and mobility, that is Rail Baltic and the electrification of roads and railways; 842 million into the health and social sector infrastructure and 1.3 billion into innovation, research capability, education and the development of business.
Akkermann noted that the Estonian economy had withstood the crisis well. The economic outlook has deteriorated in Estonia due to very high inflation and cost pressures. GDP fell by 2.4% in the third quarter of 2022 compared to the third quarter of 2021. The reasons are the negative effects of the war in Ukraine and the energy crisis which is worsening the competitiveness of Europe. GDP growth should however remain slightly positive as an average of 2022 and 2023 and should accelerate to 3% in 2024.
Akkermann explained that the current high inflation was mainly caused by the dramatic increase in energy prices. It is a shock in terms of supply which is probably not temporary. In the electricity market, our main problem is that we are consuming more electricity than we are producing. If scarcity of supply is the main cause, it is necessary to focus particularly on increasing supply. Decreasing of demand also helps. It is also important that everyone adjust their habits according to increased costs.
Akkermann said that the budget position was strongly affected by the increase in energy prices and by the additional budget needs due to the war started by Russia. According to the summer economic forecast, in 2022, we expected a budget deficit of nearly a billion euro, that is, 2.7% of GDP. Fortunately, the budget deficit is going to be considerably smaller than projected. By the end of October 2022, the government sector budget deficit was 44 million euro, that is, 0.12% of the projected annual GDP.
As a result of the economic downturn caused by the global financial crisis, the debt burden of the country increased from 4% of GDP to 10% in 2012 and the COVID crisis increased the debt burden of the country to 18.5% in 2020. As a result of the deficit, the government sector debt burden will increase to 18.8% of GDP in 2022 and to 26.2% of GDP by 2026.
The Minister of Finance explained the opportunities to improve the financial situation of the country. She emphasised that she considered it important to pursue a conservative fiscal policy.
During the debate, Maris Lauri (Reform Party), Reili Rand (Social Democratic Party) and Aivar Kokk (Isamaa) took the floor.
During the open microphone, Tarmo Kruusimäe, Peeter Ernits and Kalle Grünthal took the floor.
At the meeting with Nicu Popescu, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Moldova today, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Andres Sutt confirmed that Estonia was willing to share its experience and support Moldova on its way to the European Union.
In Sutt’s opinion, the decision passed by the European Council last summer to grant Moldova the status of candidate country of the European Union was an important milestone. “We are happy to share our experience and support Moldova in becoming a member of the European Union,” he said. “I hope that, despite the difficult security and economic situation, Moldova will make rapid progress with the necessary steps and will be able to start accession negotiations as soon as possible.”
Besides the situation in Moldova, the war Russia had started in Ukraine was also spoken about at the meeting. Sutt underlined that it was necessary to support Ukraine as long as necessary, or until Ukraine’s victory. Sutt also acknowledged Moldova’s success in handling the large flow of war refugees.
Deputy Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Enn Eesmaa also participated in the meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Moldova.
In his New Year’s speech, President of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Jüri Ratas expressed hope that our efforts and work would make the year that had just begun a turning point, from which the lives of people, the state and the nation would be better, and peace would return to Ukraine, the guns would fall silent and justice and light would win.
In his New Year speech, which was broadcast on the Estonian national TV channel ETV, Ratas thanked the people for everything they had done for their loved ones, as well as for strangers, over the past year, saying that it had been an incredible contribution. “The world around us has changed a lot in a year, and on the 104th birthday of the Republic of Estonia, what we hoped would never happen again became a reality. The war Russia started in Ukraine has destroyed much, but not the most important thing – the hope and the goodness around us. We must not let them be extinguished by war fatigue,” he said, and called for acting for peace, security and a better tomorrow for our children and grandchildren in Estonia, in Europe and the wider world also this year.
Ratas said that in the past year, we had to face the health crisis, the security crisis, the energy crisis, the economic crisis and the migration crisis, and we had to make a number of difficult decisions and reassess the options we had had before. “There has been a lot of uncertainty and fear of tomorrow. It is the task of the representatives of the state to reduce this, not to cultivate it,” he emphasised.
Ratas called for using the time before the elections of the Riigikogu to compare future scenarios in order to decide what kind of Estonia we wanted to live in. “To do this, each of us has to discuss, argue, analyse, evaluate and observe. It is not always easy, but it is necessary. Because together, we have to find a way to ensure that the obstacles we meet will not make us fall or stumble. We are in a situation where we cannot afford to make foolish mistakes, to stand by, or to overlook solutions,” said the President of the Riigikogu. He added that the goal for the new year should be finding the wisdom and unity to make our society stronger and more cohesive, so that we could sufficiently support those who feel the negative effects of the ongoing crises more and more, and unfortunately very painfully.
Ratas noted that with the rising cost of living, people’s daily lives had become increasingly intertwined with the difficulties of making ends meet. Electricity and firewood have suddenly become luxury goods, and that has hit hard not only the well-being of families but also the competitiveness of businesses. He pointed out that with the record-smashing energy prices, the prices in supermarkets had also risen, making inflation in Estonia the highest in the euro area.
“These are not the sentences any of us wanted to hear in 2022. And these are not the words we want to hear in the new year. I understand that when we wish each other a happy New Year, we are actually not sure that it will be a happy year. But I want to hope that we will try and work as hard as we can to make 2023 a turning point,” he said. “That we could look back on this year one day and think cheerfully – from then on, things got better for me, my family, my country and my nation. In that year, peace returned to Ukraine, the guns fell silent and justice and light triumphed. The smaller triumphed over the bigger. Humanity won.”
Ratas called on the people to support each other, so that despite the hardships, caring and kindness would prevail in our homes. “This will take us through all times. Let us see and appreciate all the beauty around us, because there is actually much more of it than ugliness. Let us keep it that way,” he said.
The Act on Amendments to the Family Benefits Act, the Family Law Act and the Employment Contracts Act (703 SE), which the President had refused to proclaim, passed the second reading today. The Riigikogu had made the decision to amend it this morning.
Before the second reading, the Social Affairs Committee amended the date of entry into force of the Act from 1 January to 1 February. At the same time, provisions on increased benefits, nonconsideration of studying, and the payment of benefits in stages after the child reaches 19 years of age would apply retroactively as of 1 January. The Committee added the clarification that the increased family benefits would be paid as of February when the amendments enter into force; in January, the benefits would be paid in the current amounts, and the difference between the January and February benefits would be paid out by 31 May at the latest.
The Social Affairs Committee also moved to remove the sentence in the Family Law Act which the President had seen as lacking legal clarity and therefore being in conflict with the Constitution.
In addition to the three motions to amend by the Social Affairs Committee itself, another three motions to amend were submitted but not supported. The Centre Party faction moved to increase the first and second child allowance from EUR 80 to EUR 100 per month to equal the allowance for the third child. The Social Democratic Party faction moved to increase the child benefit to EUR 119 per month for every child in the family. At the same time, they proposed keeping the allowance for families with many children at the current level, which would mean EUR 300 per month for up to six children and EUR 400 per month for seven and more children, as well as indexing child allowance and single parent’s child allowance. Member of the Riigikogu Siim Kiisler moved to abandon the indexation of the allowance for families with many children.
The Act would increase the allowance for the first and second child from EUR 60 and the single parent’s child allowance from EUR 19.18 to EUR 80 per month as of 1 January 2023. The allowance for families with many children would increase from EUR 300 to EUR 650 per month for three to six children, and from EUR 400 to EUR 850 per month for seven or more children. From 1 May 2024 the allowance for families with many children would be indexed with the pension index.
At the same time, the requirement that the child must be enrolled in a school would be abandoned as a condition for the payment of child allowance for children aged 16 to 19. This would make both the allowance for families with many children and the child allowance available to families where the child does not continue their studies for some reason, for example due to special needs. In order to promote education, the Act would retain the rule that if a 19-year-old is studying during the current academic year, the payment of the allowance would continue until they graduate or until the end of the academic year.
The Act also provides that in the case of the death of a child under three years of age, one month’s parental benefit would be paid to both the mother and the father. An amendment would also be made in the regulation for calculating maintenance provided in the Family Law Act to the effect that the allowance for families with many children would be taken into account to the extent of 50 per cent when calculating the minimum maintenance. This amendment should make the calculation of the allowance for families with many children clearer and fairer.
During the debate, non-attached Member of the Riigikogu Siim Kiisler, Reili Rand and Toomas Jürgenstein (Social Democratic Party faction), Kalle Grünthal and Mart Helme (Estonian Conservative People’s Party faction), and Tarmo Kruusimäe (Faction Isamaa) took the floor.
The sitting ended at 3.22 p.m.. The third reading of the Bill will take place during the next sitting of the extraordinary session, which starts one hour after the end of the first sitting.
This morning, the Riigikogu decided with 73 votes in favour to not pass unamended the Act which the President had returned to the Riigikogu.
The Riigikogu passed the amended Family Benefits Act, the Family Law Act and the Employment Contracts Act (703 SE), which the President had refused to proclaim last week and which the Riigikogu had decided to amend this morning.
Before the second reading, the Social Affairs Committee amended the date of entry into force of the Act from 1 January to 1 February. At the same time, provisions on increased benefits, nonconsideration of studying, and the payment of benefits in stages after the child reaches 19 years of age would apply retroactively as of 1 January. The Committee added the clarification that the increased family benefits would be paid as of February when the amendments enter into force; in January, the benefits would be paid in the current amounts, and the difference between the January and February benefits would be paid out by 31 May at the latest.
The Social Affairs Committee also moved to remove the sentence in the Family Law Act which the President had seen as lacking legal clarity and therefore being in conflict with the Constitution.
The Act would increase the allowance for the first and second child from EUR 60 and the single parent’s child allowance from EUR 19.18 to EUR 80 per month as of 1 January 2023. The allowance for families with many children would increase from EUR 300 to EUR 650 per month for three to six children, and from EUR 400 to EUR 850 per month for seven or more children. From 1 May 2024 the allowance for families with many children would be indexed with the pension index.
At the same time, the requirement that the child must be enrolled in a school would be abandoned as a condition for the payment of child allowance for children aged 16 to 19. This would make both the allowance for families with many children and the child allowance available to families where the child does not continue their studies for some reason, for example due to special needs. In order to promote education, the Act would retain the rule that if a 19-year-old is studying during the current academic year, the payment of the allowance would continue until they graduate or until the end of the academic year.
The Act also provides that in the case of the death of a child under three years of age, one month’s parental benefit would be paid to both the mother and the father. An amendment would also be made in the regulation for calculating maintenance provided in the Family Law Act to the effect that the allowance for families with many children would be taken into account to the extent of 50 per cent when calculating the minimum maintenance. This amendment should make the calculation of the allowance for families with many children clearer and fairer.
During the debate, Õnne Pillak (Reform Party faction), Mihhail Lotman (Faction Isamaa), Kalvi Kõva (Social Democratic Party faction), and Maria Jufereva-Skuratovska (Centre Party faction) took the floor.
During the final vote, 61 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of passing the Act and one voted against it.
At the first extraordinary session today, the Riigikogu debated the Act on Amendments to the Family Benefits Act, the Family Law Act and the Employment Contracts Act, which the President of the Republic had refused to proclaim, and decided against passing it unamended.
The Act (703 UA) would increase the allowance for the first and second child from EUR 60 and the single parent’s child allowance from EUR 19.18 to EUR 80 per month as of 1 January 2023. The allowance for families with many children would increase from EUR 300 to EUR 650 per month for three to six children, and from EUR 400 to EUR 850 per month for seven or more children. From 1 May 2024 the allowance for families with many children would be indexed with the pension index.
At the same time, the requirement that the child must be enrolled in a school would be abandoned as a condition for the payment of child allowance for children aged 16–19. This would make both the allowance for families with many children and the child allowance available to families where the child does not continue their studies for some reason, for example due to special needs. In order to promote education, the Act would retain the rule that if a 19-year-old is studying during the current academic year, the payment of the allowance would continue until they graduate or until the end of the academic year.
The Act also provides that in the case of the death of a child under three years of age, one month’s parental benefit would be paid to both the mother and the father. An amendment would also be made in the regulation for calculating maintenance provided in the Family Law Act to the effect that the allowance for families with many children would be taken into account to the extent of 50 per cent when calculating the minimum maintenance. This amendment should make the calculation of the allowance for families with many children more clear and fair.
The Act was presented by the Chairman of the Constitutional Committee Eduard Odinets and member of the Social Affairs Committee Priit Sibul.
Eduard Odinets quoted the Legal Adviser to the President who had informed the Constitutional Committee at its sitting the day before that the President had justified his refusal to proclaim the Act with the conflict between the Act and the Constitution as well as other considerations. Odinets proposed on behalf of the Constitutional Committee to not support the passing of the Act in its unamended form which had already been refused once by the President.
Priit Sibul explained that the Social Affairs Committee had also decided at its sitting the day before to not support passing the Act unamended and to correct the aspects that compromised its legally clarity. The Committee proposed allowing an hour after the end of the extraordinary session for submitting motions to amend.
During the debate, Jaanus Karilaid (Centre Party), Toomas Jürgenstein (Social Democratic Party), Martin Helme (Estonian Conservative People’s Party), Jürgen Ligi (Reform Party), and Mihhail Lotman (Isamaa) spoke on behalf of their factions. Member of the Riigikogu Siim Kiisler also took the floor.
73 members of the Riigikogu voted against repassing the Act unamended. This means that the Riigikogu did not repass the Act unamended. The legislative proceedings continue with the submission of motions to amend, followed by the second and the third readings.
The sitting ended at 10.29 a.m.. The term for motions to amend is 11.30 a.m. today. The second reading of the Act takes place at the third extraordinary session of the Riigikogu today, starting two hours after the end of the second extraordinary session.
The second extraordinary session starts today at 11 a.m. Its agenda includes the second reading of the Bill on Amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Act and the Health Insurance Act (725 SE), initiated by the Centre Party Faction, and in case this is concluded, also the third reading of the Bill.
