Today, the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) did not support the motion of no confidence in the Government submitted by 34 members of Riigikogu.
34 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the motion of no confidence against the Government. At least 51 votes would have been needed to express no confidence.
Urmas Reinsalu, who represented the initiators of the motion of no confidence, said that the debate was about whether the Government had failed in the performance of its duties during Kristen Michal’s term as Prime Minister. “The answer from those who submitted the motion of no confidence is clear: yes, it has. Not only because of making wrong decisions, but because it has lost credibility, a sense of reality, and broader public support,” Reinsalu said. “There is no point in hiding the fact that the outcome of today’s motion of no confidence is predictable. Tactically, this is good news for Kristen Michal: thanks to the support of Social Democrats, he will remain in office and be able to continue with his agenda in the near future. The bad news for the overwhelming majority of Estonians is that this Government will remain in office for the foreseeable future,” Reinsalu noted.
He explained that the purpose of the motion of no confidence was to present a summary of the allegations regarding the actions and inactions of Kristen Michal’s government. Reinsalu said that we would hear the charges and then the Prime Minister’s defence speech, after which a vote would take place, and the citizens of Estonia would know who in this hall supported Kristen Michal’s government.
He continued that if, by some miracle, Michal’s government were to fall today, it would mean that Kristen Michal would no longer be the Prime Minister in the nearest future, and in accordance with the Constitution of Estonia, the President would have to nominate a new candidate. “Today is the time for the summary of allegations, and the verdict will be delivered – not in this hall, not through the hands and will of the political leadership, but as a decision made through the votes of the men and women of Estonia in March 2027.”
Prime Minister Kristen Michal responded to the accusations. “Estonia’s economy is growing twice as fast as the European Union average. On average, ten percent more money has reached people’s bank accounts this year. Consumer confidence and retail sales are on the rise. Tax reductions are supporting businesses, and production, exports and creation of added value are all growing. Jobs are being created. Unemployment in Estonia has fallen to pre-pandemic level, the level of early 2020. Inflation has eased and is continuing to fall. Every single economic overview and forecast for Estonia, whether from the Bank of Estonia, commercial banks, the European Commission, or the IMF, emphasise the decisive impact of raising the basic exemption from income tax on economic growth, people’s confidence and the rapid improvement in living standards.”
“The Estonian people feel that the Government’s plan is working. This has also dawned on some of those present in this hall – those who have tried with their body and soul to show everything in Estonia in a negative light and spread horror stories based on lies about their own homeland. The picture of Estonia they have painted does not correspond to reality,” Michal said. According to him, the people do not recognise the disaster that the Conservatives, the Isamaa and the Centre Party are painting for us through every media outlet. “That is why there is a sense of headlessness within their ranks. Their lack of a growth plan is being concealed by rather clumsy political manoeuvring,” stated Michal.
The Prime Minister said that the motion of no confidence against the Government was yet another example of the irresponsible game that had already been tried without success during the presidential elections, and of the information manipulation about extraordinary elections. “During the presidential elections, an attempt was made to divide the Riigikogu and the people. They did not succeed. The narrative of an economic disaster collapsed along with the realisation that we had underestimated the state of our own economy. Now, there is a new game. All these attempts have so far come to nothing; the people they were being fooled. The opposition lost the initiative, which it is now trying to regain by attacking the Government with lies,” Michal noted.
Martin Helme from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Parliamentary Group, Lauri Laats from the Centre Party Group, Õnne Pillak from the Reform Party Group, Riina Sikkut from the Social Democratic Party Group and Helir-Valdor Seeder from Isamaa Parliamentary Group, as well as Prime Minister Kristen Michal took the floor during the debate.
Verbatim record of the sitting (in Estonian)
Photos(Erik Peinar, Chancellery of the Riigikogu).
Video recording of the sitting will be available on the Riigikogu YouTube channel.