Estonian Party Finance Watchdog Fines Electoral Coalition 'Plan B'

Estonia's Political Party Financing Surveillance Committee (ERJK) has imposed a fine on the electoral coalition 'Plan B', which ran in the last local elections in Tartu, Narva, and several other municipalities. The committee found that the coalition could not convincingly demonstrate that its election campaign financing did not involve channels of the Tartu Savings and Loan Association (THLÜ), which has since gone bankrupt.

The campaign expenditures of 'Plan B' came under ERJK scrutiny in January this year, according to the Tartu Postimees newspaper. The committee suspected that videos and clips produced by the savings and loan association, used in the campaigns of the coalitions 'Plan B. Pulse of Narva City' (led by Urbo Vaarmann) and 'Plan B' (Tartu, led by Andro Roos), were actually paid political advertising that should have been declared in campaign expense reports.

Andro Roos's responses to the committee's questions were unsatisfactory, and the Narva coalition did not respond at all. Consequently, ERJK issued new orders for explanations to both coalitions and imposed a fine of 500 euros to ensure compliance.

The committee also sent information requests to Ring FM radio station and the Tartu Savings and Loan Association, with responses due by August 15. The situation is complicated by the fact that THLÜ is now bankrupt and has ceased operations. If 'Plan B' fails to pay the fine, the law allows the committee to impose a new fine of up to 15,000 euros.