Minister of Transport Kaspars Briškens is in charge of a very challenging sector, and “he definitely needs to show results before the budget if approved”, said Latvian Prime Minister Evika Siliņa in an interview to Ir magazine.
When asked to evaluate the work done and specifically Minister of Defence Andris Sprūds, Minister of Finance Arvils Ašeradens and Minister of Transport Kaspars Briškens, Siliņa decided to focus on the last one: “I have been asked questions about the Minister of Transport. He is in charge of a very challenging sector. The results are not always the kind I wanted to see. I evaluate people based on the results of their work. […] The result will definitely be the kind I want to see.”
When asked if this means Briškens has some deadline to meet, Siliņa said it’s not like he “is ordered to achieve some result by the time the budget is approved”. She then clarified that this is about Rail Baltica. “We have to understand what kind of management model Rail Baltica will have, because the existing one has yet to achieve a result for us to easily understand what the costs will be. For us to understand the costs and returns, how we move forward – I have yet to learn this.”
The latest scenario for the development of Rail Baltica until 2030 prepared by the Ministry of Transport will be reviewed by the government soon. “We all want Riga. But it is one thing to want, and a completely different thing to build a connection with Riga. The question is how much it will cost and whether it will slow the project. This is my question to Mr. Briškens,” added the politician. “At the moment, I do not see Europe is prepared to allocated finances [towards construction of a European gauge railway track connection with Riga]. This means we will have to finance this ourselves. Is Mr. Briškens, by saying he wants Riga, truly prepared to find a solution for the financing issue?”
“The project is so complicated that replacing the minister will not change much. I have given him an opportunity to prove himself, because so far he has presented himself as a person who knows this project very well. If necessary, I will assess the minister based on the result,” Siliņa concluded about Briškens.
As for the Minister of Finance, Siliņa described Ašeradens as an experienced politician and visionary. “The Ministry of Finance will always be the institution everyone will want to criticise if there is not as much financing as we want to see. If we praised this minister, I would get the suspicion that he is doing something wrong,” said the PM. “Arvils is a visionary. He has many good ideas, and he definitely needs a team that can implement these ideas. This is the mode in which we are working.”
As for Sprūds, he received the defence sector “gift-wrapped”. This sector now receives completely different publicity and different funding volumes than before.
“The government has accomplished more than 3% of GDP [for defence]. This means society demands more responsibility, transparency, explanations of decisions made and firmer stance. There is also, speed, because the defense industry needs a different speed right now than it’s used to working, as well as cooperation with other industries,” said the PM.
When asked how good Sprūds is in dealing with his duties, Siliņa said: “I believe he has many challenges, the volume is truly large. He is trying very hard, but I believe sometimes you just have to admit that you can’t do something.”
In general, assessing whether her government will work until the next election, Siliņa refused that the tiny majority of votes in the Saeima is not what will determine the longevity of her government. “Many governments in Europe work in a minority government at all, and work very well. The key is whether you can work together. So far, we’ve been able to,” said the politician. “Of course, the two parties in the coalition are more experienced. For one party, this is their first government and there are a lot of challenges. It’s not easy, but it also gives us new aspects, makes us look at things differently.”