PM Kulbergs explains coalition U-turn on ZZS, delayed reforms ahead of elections
Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs, who is also the 'Apvienotais saraksts' candidate for premier, addressed contradictions between his election promises and government actions in an interview. He discussed the coalition with ZZS, postponed bureaucracy reforms, and savings plans.
Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs, who is not a member of any party within the 'Apvienotais saraksts' (AS) alliance but describes himself as its 'face', addressed several contentious topics ahead of the 15th Saeima elections in an interview for a LETA podcast. He revealed that without Uldis Pīlēns, who led AS before the previous elections, he would never have entered politics.
Cooperation with ZZS
Although AS had previously distanced itself from the Union of Greens and Farmers (ZZS), including over concerns about Ainārs Lembergs' influence, the two forces are now coalition partners. Kulbergs attributed this to election arithmetic, saying coalition composition is determined by voters rather than party preferences. He added that cooperation with forces represented by Aleksejs Rosļikovs or 'Sovereign Power' would be impossible, while working with Ainārs Šlesers' 'Latvia First' would be 'very difficult'.
Bureaucracy and savings
Kulbergs called bureaucracy a 'plague' but admitted that a broader reform requiring legislative changes can only be completed with a mandate from the next Saeima. As an early step, he cited deregulating the banking sector, noting companies still struggle to open accounts. He identified public procurement as the largest potential savings source, suggesting roughly 100 million euros could be saved from the sector's 7.6 billion euro turnover.
Previous government and the timber industry case
Kulbergs criticized the previous government led by Krišjānis Kariņš, even though AS itself was part of that coalition and led four ministries. He acknowledged expecting greater changes in the agriculture sector. Regarding the controversial timber industry payout case, he said the decision was made in a closed session and cannot legally be reversed, though repeating the auction would have been a simpler solution.
Security
On defense spending, Kulbergs stressed that 5% of GDP is insufficient, since Latvia forms part of the EU's external border. He rejects raising taxes as a solution and is calling on the European Union to provide more support to eastern flank countries.
