ESTONIAN REFORM PARTY

The 'Estonian Reform Party' (Estonian: ''Eesti Reformierakond'') is a free market liberal party in Estonia. The party has been a full member of Liberal International since 1996, having been an observer member between 1994-1996, and a full member of the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party.
It is led by Andrus Ansip, and after the 2007 parliamentary election holds 31 out of 101 seats in the Riigikogu, after receiving 153,040 votes (27.8% of the total), an increase of +10.1%, resulting in a net gain of 12 seats. The party has been in a coalition government several times: from 1995 to 1997 with the now defunct Estonian Coalition Party, from March, 1999 to December, 2001 in a tripartite government with Pro Patria Union and People's Party Moderates, from January, 2002 to March, 2003 with the Estonian Centre Party, and from March 2003 to March, 2005 with Res Publica and People's Union. Ansip has been prime minister of Estonia since April, 2005, and several other cabinet members, including Urmas Paet, are members of the party. Since the mid-1990s, the Reform Party has participated in most of the government coalitions in Estonia, so its influence in politics has been great, especially regarding Estonia's conservative fiscal policy and low taxes policies.

Contents

Ideological orientation and issues

See also

External links

Ideological orientation and issues

Ideologically, the Reform Party is representative of the liberal conservative and libertarian thinking of economists Friedrich von Hayek and Milton Friedman. The Reform Party is the most economically liberal in the political landscape of Estonia.

★ The party supports Estonian 0% corporate tax on re-invested income and wants to eliminate the dividend tax.

★ The party wants to cut flat income tax rate from 22% (in 2007) to 18% by 2011

★ The party opposes VAT general rate increase (current VAT rate is 18%)

★ The party wants to end conscription and to introduce a voluntary army

See also

★ Liberalism

★ Libertarianism

★ Contributions to liberal theory

★ Liberalism worldwide

★ List of liberal parties

★ Liberal democracy

★ Liberalism in Estonia

External links

★ Reform Party official site

★ Estonian Reform Party faction description of the party on the Riigikogu website