Agreements reached on education and culture as Tartu coalition talks continue
The Reform Party and Isamaa continued coalition talks in Tartu on Friday with agreements reached on issues related to both education and culture.
On Thursday, Isamaa's mayoral candidate Tõnis Lukas said that his party is prepared to give up the mayor's seat in Tartu if Reform is prepared to use its influence on issues at a national level, including blocking the ratification of the Tartu prison lease agreement. However, Isamaa's regional leader in Tartu Kaspar Kokk did not express such strong expectations.
"We also have to understand what opportunities exist at the local level to change or influence those kinds of decisions," said Kokk. "Of course, we are pleased to see that the Reform Party's Tartu faction stands with us in opposing the prison agreement, but we cannot make demands that are not legally enforceable," he added.
According to Urmas Klaas, the Reform Party's mayoral candidate, it was confirmed at the beginning of Friday morning's meeting that all officially concluded agreements are valid and therefore the coalition talks can continue.
"At the beginning of the meeting, Kaspar Kokk, leader of Isamaa in the Tartu region, confirmed that all agreements we have made remain valid. We did not discuss the issue of Tartu Prison at the meeting. We will certainly work to ensure that Tartu's voice is heard in the prison debate, but it is clear that we cannot run the Riigikogu from Tartu Town Hall," Klaas said.
"In response to the mayor's view, I would like to say that I consider it normal for both the Tartu City Government and the members of the City Council to stand up for issues affecting the people of Tartu throughout the republic," said Tõnis Lukas.
With Klaas likely to stay on as mayor if the Tartu coalition agreement includes certain points Isamaa considers important, the negotiations on education and culture-related issues continued on Friday. It was, for example, agreed that kindergarten fees will not be increased for four years and families with 4 children would be exempt from paying them.
"It has also been agreed that the construction work on the Downtown Cultural Center (Siuru) and its related outdoor areas will begin, meaning all the work planned in connection with Siuru will proceed," Klaas said.
"We guarantee all children in Tartu the opportunity to continue their education in Tartu after completing primary school. What happened this year will not be repeated. The most important thing for Isamaa is that we have agreed that over the next 4 years, we will renovate Veeriku School and its sports hall. The investment amount will be €25 million," said Kokk.
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Editor: Michael Cole, Johanna Alvin
Source: "Aktuaalne kaamera"
