Minister: Starting coalition negotiations with ministerial posts 'perplexing'

A call from the Social Democrats (SDE) to start off coalition talks with the issue of ministerial portfolio allocations is "perplexing," Eesti 200 leader and Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said Tuesday.
Eesti 200 and SDE are preparing for initial talks with Reform following the announcement that Kaja Kallas will be stepping down as prime minister later this month.
Speaking to "Aktuaalne kaamera" (AK), Tsahkna said: "There are nine Social Democrats at the parliament, while the rest are part of ongoing crossover processes," the latter being those who joined the party earlier this year, primarily from the opposition Center Party.
"So you never know how many will switch sides. This is the reality ot things, so it's somewhat odd to start negotiations with a 'job agency' mentality, with talk about distributing positions," the minister went on.
"Usually, coalition negotiations get to that point gradually. We will hear out to the various requests in the future. I, too, have different questions, so I also have my requirements," Tsahkna added.
Eesti 200 hopes the new coalition will continue with the drafts and initiatives already in progress, including the personal state, an Eesti 200 watchword, and digitization at state level.
The latter "is not just a matter of convenience," Tsahkna said.
"It is a security issue, and our ambitions in this area require a substantial amount of funding. We need to negotiate on this, though the initiative toward a personal state, personalized services, is here to stay."
Kristen Michal (Reform), widely held to become the next prime minister before the month is out, said the national defense tax debate will be the primary topic – noting that it will come up despite, or rather because, there is consensus on this, not only between his party, Eesti 200 and SDE, but also within the opposition, as well as in the media.
Stability in the government and therefore the whole country is also key, Michal noted – including stability on taxation, so that it is not changed or added to every few months.
As for SDE's request on minister posts, Michal told AK he remains "calm" on this and pledged to discuss it towards the end of the coalition talks.
"The discussion about allocation and positions always takes place at the end. This is a rule of negotiations. Otherwise, people might become too attached to certain positions or portfolios," Michal said, adding that this would make negotiating positions uneven.
Four themes are set to be included in the talks in a way which they had not been at the last coalition talks in April 2023: National defense and security, financial status, economic competitiveness, and public well-being – this latter topic was raised by SDE.
A controversial car tax bill will be amended following its rejection for assent by President Alar Karis late last month.
SDE leader Lauri Läänemets has said the party wants to change the distribution of ministerial portfolios in the upcoming negotiation talks, triggered by the announcement Kaja Kallas will be stepping down as prime minister later this month, to concentrate on her candidacy as the next High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

Constitutionally speaking, this requires fresh coalition negotiations, even as the Reform-SDE-Eesti 200 lineup is likely to remain in place.
The relative distribution of power within that coalition has changed since April 2023, when the agreement was signed: Reform has gained one seat, while Eesti 200 has lost one – to SDE, while the latter party has gained four more MPs following the departure of several high-profile Center Party members earlier this year.
This makes SDE the second largest party, rather than Eesti 200.
Kristan Michal is widely expected to become the next Estonian prime minister and has the full backing of the Reform Party as the candidate to replace Kallas.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Merili Nael
Source: 'Aktuaalne kaamera,' reporter Merilin Pärli.