Today, on January 23rd, Latvian Parliament (Saeima) with 61 votes ‘for’ supported new Krišjānis Kariņš government, in which “Attīstībai / Par!” (our political alliance) got three ministerial positions.
Minister of Environmental Protection and Regional Development – Juris Pūce
Cohead of “Attīstībai / Par!” and head of “Latvijas attīstībai” Juris Pūce will take a position of the new Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development. Among major ministerial priorities Juris Pūce declared support for Administrative division reform, to make governance in regions more effective, and foster regional development, and support for comprehensive for in the field of environmental protection including the creation of deposit-refund system (DRS) in Latvia.
Minister of Defense – Artis Pabriks
Artis Pabriks will head the Ministry of Defense and promised to work on promoting Latvia’s defense capabilities, cooperation with allies, and the creation of a national defense system. It is important to mention, that before his election into National Parliament in October 2018 Artis Pabriks worked as Member of European Parliament. Besides, Artis Pabriks had experience in holding positions of Minister of Defense and Minister of Foreign Relations before.
Ministry of Health – Ilze Viņķele
Ilze Viņķele will take a position of Minister of Health to bring about necessary reforms ion the healthcare system of Latvia, by increasing wages of medical personal, increasing overall financing of the healthcare system, and increasing transparency in healthcare making to make healthcare service in Latvia more affordable and qualitative.
