Estonian parties set out election priorities on growth and security

Party leaders preparing for the next elections outlined their main goals at a debate held at the Opinion Festival, ERR reported. The discussion focused on restarting Estonia’s economy, reversing the decline in births and strengthening national security.

Reform Party Prime Minister Kristen Michal identified national defence and economic growth as his main priorities.

“When I formed the government, I promised two things: first, that Estonia would be firmly protected. As far as it is in our hands, it certainly is,” Michal said, adding that the country had taken many measures to finance defence spending and had probably paid a price in popularity.

He said economic growth was his second priority, although it depended not only on the government or politicians but also on Estonia’s partners because of the country’s open, small economy. Growth, he said, meant that people and businesses would have more money on payday.

“At the beginning of this year, Estonia saw the largest tax cut in its history, which certainly provided momentum for this. We want to continue the same policy: Estonia is protected, the economy is growing and Estonian people are becoming more prosperous,” Michal said.

His third priority was looking to the future through clean nature, new technologies and innovation. He also highlighted the importance of maintaining the values of liberal democracy, saying Estonia had been a forward-looking country rather than one seeking solutions in the past.

Isamaa chairman Urmas Reinsalu said trust in society needed to be restored, starting with the economic outlook.

“Creating economic growth cannot simply be a slogan. It must begin with restoring optimism among investors and entrepreneurs,” Reinsalu said. He accused the government of doing everything possible to suppress economic growth and called for a fundamentally different approach.

Reinsalu’s second priority was confidence among families and restoring the purchasing power of families and individuals, while also offering people the freedom to start families and develop themselves.

“Third is an unconditional contribution to the defence of the Estonian state. Isamaa has always supported, whether in opposition or in government, the steps needed to restore and ensure Estonia’s military security, internal security and civil protection. We intend to do so unconditionally after the elections as well,” Reinsalu said.

Lavly Perling, chairwoman of the Parempoolsed party, said she had been repeating the same message for four years: words were not enough and had to be turned into actions.

“When we talk about defence spending, it cannot be that only 27 percent of the taxes collected reaches it. Words are not enough; decisions and actions are needed,” Perling said.

She said Parempoolsed stood for an Estonia that was free, prosperous and patriotic. According to Perling, this meant lower taxes and greater freedoms.

“When we talk about tax increases, that is taking away people’s freedom to decide for themselves what to do with their own money,” she said.