Jüri Ratas: I’m the prime minister and I dance to the republic’s tune

Postimees' end of the year interview with PM Jüri Ratas on December 18. Photo: Eero Vabamägi

I met with Prime Minister Jüri Ratas in Stenbock House on Friday, or the day after the government’s final press conference of 2020, to sum up the outgoing year. Even though the interview had been in the pipeline for some time, the PM’s busy schedule meant he was some twenty minutes late. Sitting in a golden armchair, waiting for the interview to start and glancing toward Ratas’ office door every now and then, I saw Mayor of Tallinn Mihhail Kõlvart who had come to meet with the PM before Postimees. The two men did not talk long before Kõlvart left and a visibly high-spirited Ratas sat down opposite me. The PM pointed out Stenbock House’s Christmas tree and asked whether we liked it. “We decorated it ourselves,” Ratas said, beaming with pride. Holiday spirit aside, we started the interview on more serious notes.

Mr. Prime Minister, we are meeting here in Stenbock House to discuss the outgoing year. It has been a difficult time and there can be no doubt that 2020 will go down in history as the year of the coronavirus. How has it changed your life?

I completely agree in that the year has been extremely difficult. It has been a year of Covid shock and looking at next year, I believe it will be better and lighter as we can place our hopes in vaccines and experience from this year.

It is doubtful we could have even grasped the concept of COVID-19 a year ago today. Is it really possible to shut down education in a democratic EU member state during peacetime? Or what about shopping centers?

How has it changed my life? It is clear that the government has dedicated itself to coronavirus topics since late February, early March. We could also dub the year one of digital culture – and indeed many meetings and engagements have taken place online. As concerns my personal life, I often meet with friends virtually on Fridays and Saturdays.

What have been Estonia’s greatest losses in the coronavirus situation?

The lives and health of the Estonian people – that has been the greatest loss.

Estonia has also lost a lot in terms of its economy. We have considerable recession, similarly to the EU and the entire world. The latest data puts Estonia’s recession for the first three quarters of the year at 3.2 percent, which is only half of the EU average. This suggests our entrepreneurs have done well.

People have also lost their jobs; unemployment is up and employment down.

I believe that we need to separate the glass half empty from the glass half full here. I believe we can confidently say that 2020 has made it universally clear that science is not just for scientists, that it is not just scientific papers or laboratories. We need the know-how of our researchers and professors every single day. We can say that close cooperation between the government and the scientific community this past year has been a leap forward.

Have the Estonian people stuck together in this crisis?

I dare say the Estonian society has behaved like an us society. The Estonian people have made efforts. True, we cannot say all of them have always. We cannot say that everyone always observes the 2+2 rule and it is a problem. But generally speaking, society has come through the first wave of the coronavirus and pulled together now in the second.

This effort needs to continue, it is not done and the crisis not over. The number of people hospitalized is still growing and the number of available hospital beds dwindling.

Coronavirus immunization is set to begin in the near future – even before they ear is out. Does that mean a return to normal is within reach or has the world changed for good in some respects?

It is a very strong statement to suggest the world has changed for good. I believe the world has learned a powerful lesson this year.

One part of it is research and development, innovation. Estonia will also be contributing 1 percent of GDP to R&D in the coming years.

The world has been delivered a strong impulse for development of digital solutions and the EU for hitting climate targets.

However, we also learned that the Estonian medical system must be even better prepared and needs additional investments.

Does the government have a corresponding plan?

Yes, we have an investment plan in place. It is tied to next year’s state budget and the [EU] recovery plan where we will be going after support and investments: €380 million for the new hospital in Tallinn, €35 million for Narva Hospital. Whether we will pull it off depends on the course of negotiations.

But I hope the fall of 2021 will be different in that we will be moving back to everyday or normal life. (Of course, there will be changes and they will be lasting.) Great expectations are placed on vaccines. We are not counting days until immunization starts at this point but rather thinking about how starting a few hours earlier could help us be more effective.

The role of PM is no doubt complicated in the best of times, while it has likely been more so this year. How difficult has it been to find common ground with coalition partners this year?

The PM is responsible for society also during this crisis. Whether he is doing a good job or not is for your readers to gauge. I have felt this responsibility from the first second. I have tried to bear it in cooperation with scientists, doctors, the [COVID-19] advisory council and the Health Board.

Talking about solving this crisis, coalition partners’ will to work together and perception of their responsibility to society and people have been very strong. The crisis has moved through various aspects: healthcare crisis, economic crisis, supplementary state budget. There was a time in spring we were having Covid meetings six or seven times a week and have returned to this frequency by today.

Critics have accused Isamaa and mostly your Center Party of dancing to the Conservative People’s Party’s (EKRE) tune in the government. Do these lines of force seem different behind closed doors?

The opposition is always out to claim that the prime minister is not up to the task and that really someone else is running the government – it has been the case in the past and I’m sure will be in the future. Whose tune is Jüri Ratas dancing to? The instrument is called the Republic of Estonia and dancing to that tune takes a lot of effort in terms of finding solutions for bringing the country and people out of the crisis in the best possible way.

All coalition parties are different. EKRE, Isamaa and Center. There are certain ideological differences, differences in terms of values, but that is how it needs to be in a coalition.

Is it an easy coalition? No, it is not. Coalitions are always hard. It is much simpler to be in the opposition where you are only responsible for your own messages. A coalition means searching for political compromises while being able to take responsibility for Estonia and realize your goals through said compromises.

I will still go ahead and ask whether the government is run by Jüri Ratas or Martin Helme (EKRE chairman – ed.)?

Jüri Ratas is prime minister of Estonia.

Swapping ministers could be described as a trait of this government. How is it affecting the government’s work?

Ministers change for different reasons. They change because doctors recommend lowering one’s stress level and slowing down, they change because of scandals and when people take political responsibility. If I’m not mistaken, the government has had to replace seven ministers in its 18 months in office.

Does it make things easier? Changing ministers is always complicated because the new person needs to be brought up to speed; however, at the end of the day, we have highly professional state officials and ministries and the government has a very clear program and coalition agreement.

Minister of Education and Research Mailis Reps decided to resign following a scandal despite support from you. Reps is not just a fellow Center Party member and colleague but also a long-time friend of yours. Was is it difficult for you?

Yes, it was very difficult. Mailis, after having served as education minister more than once, has a very good grasp on these topics and on a broad scale.

I remember it was a Friday when Mailis came to me and said she has made her decision to protect her family and herself, that she has made mistakes in trying to marry working and family life and will be taking political responsibility. I believe it takes strength for a politician to make such a decision. Mailis will be a great contributor, an excellent colleague and a force to be reckoned with in Center’s Riigikogu group and will make a great European Union Affairs Committee chair.

Mailis is a close friend – of course it is difficult on a personal level.

Remote learning during the COVID-19 period and your long hours – where does that leave your wife? Is the situation difficult for her?

I am nowhere near as capable as she is. I will be honest and say that I would not be happy if my spouse was working the hours I am. The fact she has managed it all is astonishing and my heartfelt thanks goes out to her as it is clear that I have seldom been around in the past ten months to say the least. But she has managed it, with help from my mother when it comes to looking after the children. I believe it is great when different generations can work so well together.

Where lies the strength of the coalition?

I believe it is the will to cooperate and the ability to make decisions. That we are able to make decisions that tie into our activity plan even in the conditions of the crisis.

We can take the example of R&D funding reaching 1 percent of GDP – it was on the agenda for a long time and it has been done now.

Continued growth of defense spending. When I spoke to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in spring, we agreed that we will not just be discussing maintaining defense spending but also nominal level of investment.

I would also point out the pension reform. The opposition has criticized me for extraordinarily hiking pensions in April 2020. We know today those seven euros have been crucial. There will be an extraordinary pensions hike again next year.

There is no way around the marriage referendum. It is EKRE’s item in the coalition agreement that is fueling passions among the people and MPs. Do we need it and why?

Considering how lively this debate has become, I suppose it shows the people of Estonia care a great deal about this topic. I believe that what happens at home is the personal business of those who live there. The main thing is to make sure everyone is protected and cared for in society, while I personally wish our homes are full of love, care and support.

The referendum is an item of the coalition agreement. When coalition talks began, the original proposal was for the Registered Partnership Act to be repealed. It might seem paradoxical today, but the Center Party has served as the guarantor of the Registered Partnership Act and we deem it important.

I believe this debate has brought us closer to the realization that we need to pass the implementing provisions of the Registered Partnership Act. This legal vacuum that we have had for six years now is not good.

It has been a difficult year. What message does the PM have for the people as we are waiting for the new year to begin?

That we will defeat this crisis together. It has been compared to a running competition where we have reached the home stretch but not the finish line. That requires more effort.

I definitely wish people would spend the holidays with their family as that is what matters most, while we should not forget to keep our distance.

I would like to thank and wish strength to those who have to work during the holidays: doctors, nurses, medics, those serving in foreign missions, our soldiers, police and Alarm Center operatives as well as rescuer workers. I want to extend thanks to people working in our nursing homes. And wish strength and a speedy recovery to those in nursing homes and hospitals.