Employers have published their manifesto outlining what Estonia's economy should look like. One of its main recommendations for politicians is to focus on increasing productivity.

"We need more ambition. Right now, when the economy is growing, we need greater ambition. I really liked when Andrus Ansip, as prime minister, said that Estonia's goal is to reach the top five richest countries. We must have greater ambition," Hanschmidt said on an ERR television program.

Hanschmidt emphasized that to increase productivity by five to six percent annually, the economic environment must be very business‑friendly.

Calls for greater ambition

"We should take inspiration from the United States. The state of Texas has one of the best economic environments in the world. There, politicians look at things this way: if a law or regulation hinders business, they remove it or discuss how to rethink it," he said.

"The same applies to Estonia. Our economic environment must be such that all politicians, entrepreneurs, employees and officials move in step and think about how to grow the economy. Because Estonia is a democracy, some have thought that economic growth is not the most important thing — but in reality, it is the source of our standard of living," he said.

"Money doesn't make you happy — money makes you calm," Hanschmidt replied when asked how much money is needed for a good life.

He disagrees with his former colleague Janek Mäggi's claim that Estonians have become complacent.

"Estonians are very diligent workers and act thoughtfully, but sometimes the political system becomes too complicated. That's the problem," he said, recalling how many strong leaders emerged during the difficult times of the 1990s.

Stable environment key to attracting investment

He also disagrees with SEB economic analyst Mihkel Nestor, who argued that two to three percent economic growth does not make people happier.

"It does, it does," Hanschmidt insisted. "I think this dissatisfaction is our source of energy. You must criticize and be dissatisfied if you want development and want to move Estonia forward. In any case, I believe that in 2026 we will be more satisfied than five years ago, when Covid hit, the war in Ukraine began, the threats were huge and the economy was in decline. Today the economy is already growing."

A stable security environment would also bring more foreign investment, Hanschmidt added.

He said that the recent exposure of disorder in the defense sector is actually positive.

"There should be greater parliamentary or civilian oversight over those security structures that can use money. You cannot simply say it's a defense secret or a war secret," he said.

Hanschmidt sees the so‑called tax peace and the removal of the tax hump as measures that boost the economy.

End of tax hump boost consumer confidence

"People were left with significantly more money — around 800 million euros — which increased consumer confidence. Looking at card payment data, payments grew by about 12 percent. People can decide for themselves where to put their money. If we give decision‑making power only to civil servants, we have to put controls everywhere, and then things happen like 60 million disappearing somewhere in India," he said.

Regarding the wealth tax proposed by Eesti 200 chair Kristina Kallas, Hanschmidt said it is still too early.

"Sweden has a wealth tax, but they have been accumulating wealth for a long time — they haven't had a war on their territory for about 400 years. We have been diligently and smartly building our wealth since 1991. I think Estonia's economy, entrepreneurship and resources are too thin. If these are heavily taxed, the economy won't withstand it," he said.

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