At today’s sitting of the Riigikogu, five Bills passed the first reading, including a Bill regulating the retention and use of communications data, which will affect the organisation of the work of law enforcement authorities and the methods they use to collect evidence.
The Bill on Amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Code of Misdemeanour Procedure, the Electronic Communications Act and Other Acts(retention and use of communications data) (1007 SE), initiated by the Government of the Republic, passed the first reading. The aim of the Bill is to amend the procedure for collecting telecommunications data in Estonia and to ensure that the retention of communications data, requests for such data, and the use of data obtained as a result of such requests are in compliance with the European Union law. The Bill will affect the organisation of the work of law enforcement authorities and the way they collect evidence.
The Bill on Amendments to the Code of Enforcement Procedure and Amendments to Other Associated Acts (927 SE), initiated by the Government, also passed the first reading. The purpose of the amendments is to render the enforcement procedure more efficient, clearer and more consistent, and to reduce the disputes between the parties to proceedings. They are also aimed at ensuring the sustainability of enforcement agents’ work in situations where the recovery of enforcement costs has so far been insufficiently regulated.
The amendments will revise the procedure for processing complaints against enforcement agents’ actions in order to render the exercise of the right to appeal quicker and clearer for both debtors and enforcement agents. The procedure for continuing enforcement proceedings after the debtor’s death will also be revised, as the regulation currently in force has not been sufficiently efficient and proceedings have often stalled due to the inactivity of the parties involved. The aim of amendments is to speed up the determination of successors or to enable inactive proceedings to be concluded within a reasonable period of time.
Furthermore, enforcement agents will be given the possibility, in justified cases, to temporarily restrict access to information about enquiries made during the enforcement proceedings in order to prevent the obstruction of proceedings or the concealing of assets before the enforcement notice is delivered. The Bill specifies the rules governing the payment of enforcement proceedings’ costs in various situations, including bankruptcy proceedings, joining in compulsory enforcement, and in the event an enforcement document is cancelled or a claim is terminated.
In addition, a clearer procedure will be established for covering the costs arising upon the expiry of claims resulting from misdemeanour and criminal proceedings, in order to reduce the debt burden of debtors. The principles governing fees for the collection of maintenance will also be amended in order to improve its collection. The supervision competence of the Chamber of Bailiffs and Trustees in Bankruptcy over the activities of enforcement agents will also be strengthened, and the Board of the Chamber will be given additional possibilities for developing consistent and lawful practice. The Bill will have different impacts on debtors, enforcement agents, and successors. Although the initial administrative burden may increase in certain proceedings, in the longer term, clearer rules and fewer disputes should simplify proceedings and reduce the burden.
At today`s sitting, the Bill on Amendments to the Commercial Code and Other Acts (1008 SE), initiated by the Government of the Republic, passed the first reading. The bill is intended to make the rules governing the business environment more flexible and to reduce the administrative burden on associations. Among other things, the requirements concerning the quorum for meetings of members and shareholders, the share capital contributions, meetings of the supervisory board, and notices of general meetings will be simplified. The right of members and shareholders to obtain information about the association and its subsidiaries will also be expanded.
The procedure for the transfer of shares of a private limited company will be significantly amended. In the future, the parties will be able to agree on the time of the share transfer, and the transfer will no longer depend on the entry in the commercial register. The list of members in the commercial register will become declarative and will be maintained by the Board.
As a new option, it will be possible to establish a private foundation, or a foundation operating in private interests, in order to hold and manage assets (for instance, to ensure the consistent management of family assets or a farm). Furthermore, the founder of a foundation will be allowed to waive their founder’s rights.
The possibilities of automating the commercial register will also be expanded. For example, it will be possible to automate the checking of business names, which will further simplify the process of establishing a private limited company.
The Bill on Amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure (facilitating international cooperation) (933 SE), initiated by the Government of the Republic, also passed the first reading. The Bill proposes amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure in order to bring it into line with European Union law, and to make international cooperation in criminal procedure with other EU Member States simpler and more efficient.
Firstly, the recognition of financial penalties and fines (primarily traffic fines) imposed in other Member States will be simplified. Secondly, the possibilities of recognising in Estonia a punishment imposed in a foreign country will be expanded. Thirdly, national rules will be established for implementing a new EU regulation concerning the transfer of a criminal proceedings from one Member State to another. Fourthly, the procedure for European arrest warrant will be clarified.
The Bill on Amendments to the Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Code of Misdemeanour Procedure (934 SE), initiated by the Government of the Republic, also passed the first reading. The Bill brings the chapter of the Penal Code on offences against environment and the division on offences relating to ionising radiation into line with the revised and updated version of the European Union Environmental Crime Directive. The new version of the directive concerns the protection of the environment through criminal law.
The aim of the Bill is to ensure a high level of protection of the environment, including natural resources, fauna and flora, and to improve environmental quality through criminal law measures. The scope, scale and “profitability” of environmental crime have increased over the years, giving rise to the need for a new and updated directive. The latest EU directive provides for a revised and more detailed list of such environmental offences. New offences in the list include, for example, the violation of the requirements governing the use, spread or cultivation of invasive alien species that threaten the natural balance, where this seriously threatens native species or otherwise causes significant damage to the balance of the ecosystem. A new provision also covers the unlawful handling of fluorinated greenhouse gases, such as the illegal import of refrigerants, where this causes or poses a risk of significant environmental damage.
Verbatim record of the sitting (in Estonian)
Video recording will be available on the Riigikogu YouTube channel.