The latest issue relates to Hartman's planned appointment of regional special representatives, which Reform's economics minister said he opposes.

Hartman's ministry oversees regional matters, and she has said that both Keldo and Education Minister Kristina Kallas (Eesti 200) have criticized SDE and her ministry inappropriately.

Hartman said: "It is not appropriate to publicly criticize coalition partners in this way. Things are at a standstill because there are reasons—substantive reasons—why we are not ready to move forward with certain actions."

Kallas made a claim Friday that SDE was holding up legislation.

Hartman rejected this, saying: "We also have our own matters that are currently held up. For example, my Local Government Organization Act has been stalled because Kristina Kallas has not allowed it to move forward."

"It must be accepted that coalition partners have a range of understandings on certain issues," Hartman went on.

"We make dozens of decisions every day. There are very important themes on which we have reached agreements with our coalition partners, and we are moving forward with them. On very fundamental issues, we have reached these agreements. But there are some issues that simply require more discussions," the minister went on.

"We, as Social Democrats, have taken the position of staying calm. There is no point in throwing fuel on the fire," Hartman added.

"To the critics, I would also say that when I look at the recent period, the trend is that the gaps between regions are widening. As the Minister of Regional and Agricultural Affairs, I cannot simply say that I will do nothing," she continued.

To that end, Hartman is pressing on with the appointment of special regional representatives in Estonia, despite criticism from coalition partners.

The decisions are for her and her ministry to make, she added.
"We are, of course, moving forward with this, because in addition to looking at how we organize life in growth regions, it is important to ensure development across all of Estonia," Hartman said.

"The task of regional coordinators is to address entrepreneurship and job creation issues and find ways to channel resources from the central level," she added.

A predecessor to Hartman as regional affairs minister, Madis Kallas, also of SDE, announced the appointment of a special representative, solely to Ida-Viru County, Estonia's most deprived region, in 2023.

That representative, Jaanus Purga, resigned from the post last fall.

Under Hartman's current proposal, there would be special representatives appointed to all of Estonia: Virumaa (i.e. Northeastern Estonia), plus three more to Central, Southern, and Western Estonia.

Hartman praised Purga's work in implementing the EU Just Transition Fund, which she said ensured the effective use of funds and job creation. She stressed the need for similar efforts in other regions, hoping the new appointees would drive job growth across Estonia.

Hartman said regional special representatives will replace former county coordinators, reducing their number from eight to four.

They need "a different background" with leadership and business experience to "push through measures" and engage with ministers. Though "formally part of the ministry," they will be based locally and "regularly present at the government cabinet table," she said.

Hartman said more EU business funding should go to regional levels, requiring local agreements on investment priorities.

Rainer Eidemiller has been appointed as Central Estonia's special representative, while 37 candidates are in the running for the remaining three positions — 10 for the Eastern region, 10 for the Southern one, and 17 for Western — which will be finalized soon, Hartman said.

Economics minister: This is not the right road to go down

Minister of Economic Affairs and Industry Erkki Keldo (Reform) has criticized the hiring of regional special representatives.

He said: "If we want the public sector to become more efficient, then hiring new people is definitely not the right message."

"We already have county development and business centers, a rural development foundation, and an entrepreneurship and innovation foundation that offer various business support measures," Keldo went on.

"If we need to increase regional communication with entrepreneurs, then these institutions already exist, and we need to listen more to businesspeople," the minister added.

Hartman responded again by noting that the policy was under her ministry's purview and not Keldo's.

"First of all, the activities carried out by the Ministry of Regional and Agricultural Affairs and the personnel policy we implement are determined by the minister and the ministry's leadership," she said.

"We have significantly reduced our staff numbers today, including the positions of previous regional representatives. This is what we have done, unlike, for example, Minister of Economic Affairs and Industry Erkki Keldo, who has not laid off a single person in his ministry over the past year. We have made those difficult decisions," she added.

Hartman said regional leaders must bridge local governments and ministries, working on the ground to find solutions, support entrepreneurs, and keep policies moving forward.

SDE has this week faced sharp criticism from its coalition partners, with Reform Party leaders as well as Eesti 200's Kristina Kallas charging them with blocking legislation on third-country national employment, voting rights, and making other deviations from the coalition deal signed last summer.

The apparent coalition split emerged earlier in the week, with the issue being documentation requirements Hartman's ministry wants to apply to loose-packaged foodstuffs when these are donated to food banks in Estonia.

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