Speaking to ERR; Võrklaev said that they are only just starting to work out how much money in the budget went unspent in 2023 and will be carried over into 2024, and that he doesn't yet have a definitive rundown thereof because up until recently, all energy went toward dealing with the supplementary budget.

"We're only just piecing it together, but these numbers are in the tens or even hundreds of millions of euros," he admitted. "Last year it came in around €900 million, but I haven't yet crunched this year's numbers."

The finance minister said that now they are dealing with the question of whether this is money that could be cut.

"We're asking the ministries how it's possible that in a situation where we know we have no money – we hear every day about how all sectors are short – certain budget lines remain in surplus each year," he highlighted.

He added that there are a lot of questions, ministries and sectors, and that work on this will continue step by step.

"We've gone in depth with three ministries in the framework of the zero-based budget project – the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Social Affairs, and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications (MKM)," Võrklaev said. "This is an ongoing effort, asking questions and keeping an eye on the money."

Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna (Eesti 200) said Wednesday that transferable expenditures in the budget have swelled since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that the amount the state carries over from one year into the next after it didn't manage to be spent is somewhere in the realm of €1 billion.

"So I believe there's still more room there to make cuts in a way that we don't actually hurt the economy as well," Tsahkna said.

Varying reasons for budget carryover

On May 15, Prime Minister Kaja Kallas (Reform) explained during question time at the Riigikogu why transferable funds come to be.

"The reasons for these carryovers vary considerably," Kallas explained. "For example, the postponement of investment procurements, procurement failures, the balance of deferred acquisitions which are used for the same activities the following year; certain activities being canceled or utilizing less than the planned [budget] volume; in the case of grants, when the target group or demand were smaller, there were fewer applicants; the cost of procurements or services turned out to be more affordable than planned – which is a good thing – or when capacity was lacking to implement [certain] activities or services in planned volumes."

When one-off budgetary appropriations don't manage to be used up within a year, then they are carried over into the next. The head of government noted that some sectors have longer-term contracts and that in the case of research funding, for example, there are multi-year projects that are expensed on an accrual basis the year the project ends.

She added that when drawing up next year's budget, all transferable funds will be closely scrutinized, and if any money should be left over while other spots are short, then it should be able to be used to do the things that need to be done.

"Thus we'll have to do fewer of these drastic austerity measures if we can use these transferable funds," Kallas said, adding that government agencies were to coordinate proposals for directives on transferable funds with the Ministry of Finance by May 15, and sign and publish them on their websites by May 31.

The Estonian government on Wednesday approved a negative supplementary budget for 2024, including nearly €115 million in austerity measures and €68 million in revenue measures, and sent it to the Riigikogu for discussion.

Savings in the state's current expenditures will chiefly concern management and operating costs, while public foundations will likewise have to contribute to savings; to increase state revenue, more dividends will be taken from state-owned companies as well.

This time, austerity measures will not impact museums, theaters and concert foundations. Hospitals, however, will have to contribute 1 percent savings on operating costs.

--

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