Opposition submits more than 800 amendments to delay car tax bill passing
Opposition parties submitted 825 amendments to the car tax bill, chairman of the Riigikogus' Finance Committee Annely Akkermann (Reform) said on Wednesday. This process is used to delay its entry into law.
EKRE, Isamaa, and Center make up the parliament's opposition.
"Of those from EKRE, I have seen many that overlap and aim to obstruct – changing the same amendment by €1 or even 1 cent [each time]," the MP said.
However, Akkermann also said there were substantive proposals among the amendments.
Andrei Korobeinik, the vice-chairman of the Center Party faction, said his party submitted more than 300 amendments to obstruct the Riigikogu's work. This is so legal ways can be found to prevent the bill from passing.
"The Center Party shares the view of three-quarters of Estonian people who do not support the introduction of a car tax, according to the latest poll," he said. "At a time when the Estonian economy has been in recession for more than two years in a row and unemployment is showing a steady increase, it is not wise to burden the Estonian people with a new tax."
"Our amendments are substantive, and if the government must adopt a car tax, the money raised from it could be earmarked, for example, to fund road construction, the implementation of free public transport, or the development of digital infrastructure and intelligent transport systems," he added.
Finance Committee member Siim Pohlak (EKRE) said the party believes the Estonian people are already paying too many car-related taxes. "Therefore, the car tax planned by the governing parties, and more specifically the two taxes – the tax on acquiring a car in Estonia and the tax on owning a car – are unfair and unreasonable," he said.
The MP added: "Our amendments vary in substance, including, for example, exempting several social groups from the car tax. The final objective is common to the entire EKRE faction – car tax must be abolished."
Akkermann said the second reading of the bill has not been scheduled yet.
"We are certainly waiting for the European Commission's opinion on the registration fee as regulated by law. At present, the registration fee has to be paid for vehicles registered in Estonia for the first time. This excludes vehicles previously registered in Estonia from the registration fee. We have received the opinion that this may be contrary to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. Our own legal analysis department is of the same opinion. We await the European Commission's opinion on this. It should be received in May at the latest," the MP said.
The bill is supposed to come into effect in 2025 and will introduce two new taxes for vehicle owners. It aims to push people into using more environmentally friendly forms of transport. Purchasing and ownership of passenger cars will rise by 5-15 percent.
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Editor: Helen Wright