Riigikogu votes down Isamaa MP call for investigative committee into prime minister

MPs on Wednesday voted down a proposal to set up an investigative committee to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the business activities of the spouse of Prime Minister Kaja Kallas (Reform).
The bill, put forward by Isamaa chief whip Helir-Valdor Seeder, was voted down 51 to 26, with 13 abstentions.
Seeder stated that the committee would still be relevant, adding the matter should not be allowed to recede from view.
"The war between Russia and Ukraine is still relevant. The question is still one of Estonia's security. It has not lost its relevance," Seeder said, the main concern being that some of the business activities the premier's spouse had been involved in had been connected to Russia.
The proposal had last month also been voted down by the Riigikogu's constitutional affairs committee.
Among the 13 abstainers were several coalition MPs including deputy speaker Toomas Kivimägi (Reform), Raimond Kaljulaid (SDE), Liisa Pakosta (Estonia 200) and Luisa Rõivas (Reform).
The vote was one of the last substantive actions to be carried out by parliament in 2023. Thursday is the Riigikogu's last day before the Christmas and New Year recess, and is mostly taken up by festivities to that end. The Riigikogu returns to work on January 8.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Aleksander Krjukov