Member of the Legal Commission of the Riigikogu from the Social Democratic Party Heljo Pikhof submitted an inquiry to the Minister of Justice and Digitalization Liisa-Li Pakosta regarding the government's plans to house Swedish prisoners in the Tartu prison.
- Many significant questions remain unanswered: where will the specialists in internal security come from, how will it be possible to avoid weakening the police, who will bear the real burden in the healthcare and justice institutions, and why are data on expenses that do not reflect the real cost of vacant prison places being used to persuade the public? Moreover, the minister claimed that maintaining a vacant prison building costs taxpayers 12 million euros a year, but the vice-chancellor of the same ministry confirmed that the actual expenses are several times lower, - the inquiry states.
As an example, Pikhof also mentioned the additional burden on Estonia's healthcare system. “The Tartu prison already has medical and psychiatric departments, and services are provided by staff from the Viljandi hospital. Therefore, the answer that the Swedish state will pay the bill is not enough. It is important to know whose working time, facilities, and specialists will actually be involved and how it will be guaranteed that the residents of Estonia will not be left without medical services, and that our waiting lists for treatment will not increase?” — the inquiry from Heljo Pikhof to the minister states.
The Social Democrats also want to know from Minister Pakosta how she will ensure that the hiring of up to 250 additional prison staff does not come at the expense of the patrol police, public order, or the sense of security of local residents?
According to the editorial board of bb.lv, the newly opened prison in Liepaja (in the photo), which was recently inaugurated with such pomp, could also participate in the tender for prisoners. From Sweden, Norway, Finland, as long as they are from wealthy countries, it will bring happiness to everyone. What do you think?
