The composition of Latvia’s new governing coalition could become clear by Saturday, Saeima Speaker Edvards Smiltēns (United List) said in an interview with TV3’s “900 sekundes” programme on Thursday.
He predicted that Prime Minister-designate Andris Kulbergs (United List) would clarify the composition of the coalition this week, while candidates for ministerial posts could be announced this week or by Monday at the latest. Negotiations on these matters are continuing.
Smiltēns rejected criticism that the government formation process was moving too slowly, pointing out that only about a week had passed since Kulbergs’s nomination.
He also emphasised that forming a government must be balanced with the duties of the current Prime Minister, including representing Latvia’s interests at international meetings.
Negotiations are also continuing remotely, with another late-night telephone conversation having taken place the previous evening.
Commenting on a statement by Ainārs Šlesers, leader of Latvia First, that he would not support a government in which United List worked alongside New Unity or the Progressives, Smiltēns stressed that the government was being formed by Kulbergs and United List.
Therefore, United List itself would choose its cooperation partners and negotiate the composition of the government.
At the same time, Smiltēns wants the Saeima to begin operating at full capacity next week.
This requires the establishment of parliamentary committees and the election of their leadership.
He intends to coordinate this process with government formation to avoid situations in which newly elected committee chairs would soon have to be replaced after taking up ministerial positions.
However,
Smiltēns believes that if difficulties arise in forming the government, the start of parliamentary work should not be postponed.
Discussing the allocation of committee leadership positions, Smiltēns said that United List must secure the chairmanship of the Budget Committee.
In his view, the committee should be led by the political force represented by the Prime Minister to ensure the smooth passage of the state budget.
He also identified the Economic Affairs Committee as a possible priority and emphasised the importance of defence-related matters.
Smiltēns added that opposition parties should also have opportunities to chair parliamentary committees or hold deputy chairmanship positions.
A final agreement on the distribution of committee leadership posts has not yet been reached.
As previously reported by the LETA news agency, Prime Minister and prospective head of the next government Andris Kulbergs (United List) said in an interview with TV3’s “900 sekundes” programme that the political parties forming the next government could be announced this week, while ministerial candidates might become known next week.
Kulbergs expressed hope that an agreement on government partners and the cooperation model could be reached this week.
However, he stressed that before any announcement, the parties involved must have reached an agreement and the relevant documents must be ready for signing.
So far, negotiations on forming the government have been particularly notable for the alignment of views between United List and the National Alliance.
During the second round of negotiations on Monday, Kulbergs held his longest meeting with the National Alliance, which he praised for its preparation.
National Alliance leader Ilze Indriksone, meanwhile, said the two political forces shared a common long-term vision.
Latvian Television reported on Tuesday that United List was, at that point, continuing active negotiations only with the National Alliance, while New Unity and the Progressives had not been invited to the next round of talks.
Discussions with the National Alliance also include how to establish safeguards within the cooperation model to prevent the party from being outvoted on matters of principle with support from the opposition.