Kaja Kallas, Estonia’s newly sworn in first female prime minister, has said her cabinet will have a very clear change in policies on issues like climate change. 43-year-old Kallas was sworn in as prime minister on January 26. The former lawyer is the head of Estonia’s Reform party. “My government will be very pro-European, especially in supporting European values such as the rule of law,” Kallas told The Guardian.
The coalition government under the former Member of the European Parliament has promise that it would stop the production of oil shale power by 2035. The government also aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
Kallas also said the government would work towards granting full rights to civil partnerships, ensuring same rights to everyone. The Estonian government recognised civil partnership between same-sex couples in 2015. But, several provisions are not yet in force.
With Kallas, daughter of former prime minister Siim Kallas being sworn in, Estonia becomes one of the few countries in the world where both the prime minister and head of the state are women. Kallas also said that the new government’s top priority was tackling the country’s coronavirus crisis. Kallas, who has appointed women to key positions in the cabinet including finance and foreign affairs said, EU President Charles Michel’s goal of moving towards fiscal balance was in place, and that financial sustainability EU is important.
