Hartman, a former culture minister, will replace Madis Kallas (SDE), who announced his resignation on Tuesday, and gave this short interview to "Aktuaalne kaamera" as follows.

Interviewer Priit Kuusk: When were you first approached about potentially being the next regional minister?

Piret Hartman: The first signs appeared on Sunday, once the coalition in Tallinn had been confirmed.

So, you've only had a few days in which to decide whether to accept the offer. That is a relatively short time, but you are diving into a new arena.

In politics, decisions need to be made very quickly. That was the amount of time I had. Plus, of course, my soul of being an improver of the world remains strong within me. I have had many good opportunities at present, to contribute to existing jobs, but certainly reducing regional inequality is one of the missions which initially brought me into politics.

From culture to rural life. What is it that makes you a strong potential regional minister?

On the one hand, my education relates to agriculture. I am a graduate of the University of Life Sciences (Eesti Maaülikool), earning both bachelor's and master's degrees there.

Second, last year, in collaboration with Madis Kallas, we prepared for the establishment of the land and spatial planning agency (Maa- ja ruumiamet), so I actually worked at the regional and rural affairs ministry for almost four to five months. I had to deal a lot with regional issues in Ida-Viru County while there, too.

Several important areas have been addressed: Support for farmers, the "Robin Hood" redistribution plan, public transport. What will happen with this Robin Hood plan? How successful will you be in convincing wealthier municipalities to donate their funds earmarked for kindergarten construction to poorer ones, so the latter can create care home places?

I would hope that the agreement reached last week in the government holds. Then we will start the negotiations from that point.

This has all been so vague; just talking about discussing things, moving forward, planning – that doesn't really say anything...

I will be diving straight in. I know that Madis Kallas has been talking about this issue extensively with various local governments, and I will take over the reins from where he left off.

What about public transport? There is already a significant shortfall here. How will you ensure that public transport does not grind to a halt towards the end of the year?

A public transport reform has been agreed upon. Additional resources have been allocated towards this. I know that the ministry has had this reform under preparation. Similarly, I will take on this reform, delve into it and move it forward.

With a Ministry of Finance background too, you should certainly be aware of the current financial state of the country. There's been a lot of talk about the need to cut back. Where will you make cuts in your new ministry?

At the Ministry of Finance, I was responsible for a team that included a zero-budget project, so I am quite aware of the situation. But certainly, proposals for cuts cannot be made very hastily; this requires thorough investigation to see what possibilities there are.

But you will have to find those areas to make cuts in?

All the ministries will have to find them.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!