The Estonian government has approved and submitted to parliament the Draft Act Amending the Emergency Act and Other Related Acts. This act will transpose into Estonian law the EU’s Critical Entities Resilience (CER) Directive, expanding the scope of critical service providers and increasing the availability of services in times of crisis.
Secretary of State Taimar Peterkop stated, “This change is a step forward in better protecting the people of Estonia and ensuring that both the state and essential services function whatever the situation, including a widespread crisis. The pandemic, smaller weather-induced crises, and the changed security situation have shown that the basic services we need in our everyday lives are vulnerable and have to be safeguarded. Transposing the directive and amending our laws accordingly will create a common legal framework which service providers can follow to take their continuity to a new level.”
The transposition of the CER Directive will not necessitate any substantial changes to Estonian law, as the Emergency Act largely already regulates essential services in accordance with the directive’s requirements. However, it will add to the list of essential services and their providers. Alongside the 14 services already named in the act, the functioning of airfields, air navigation services, ports, public railways, general medical services, and the supply of food and medications will now also be considered essential services. As such, port, airport, and railway operators, GPs, pharmaceutical wholesalers, and larger food business operators will henceforth be classified as essential service providers.
Previously, only water, central heating, and road maintenance companies serving local government areas with populations of more than 10,000 qualified as essential service providers. Now, all of the listed companies will qualify as providers regardless of the number of residents in the areas in which they operate. Once the draft act enters into force, there will be 21 essential services, while the number of companies providing them will rise by 315 to a total of 422.
Essential services providers will have to conduct a continuity risk analysis, draft an accompanying plan, arrange a crisis drill, and fulfill other requirements to guarantee their continuity. This includes ensuring the reliability of those providing essential services by identifying critical roles and assessing people’s suitability for the tasks they entail, carrying out background checks wherever necessary. Going forward, the service providers must also be prepared to undergo independent audits of the continuity of their service.
The draft act also pertains to the institutions responsible for managing the continuity of essential services. The existing act lists 37 such institutions: the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications; the Ministry of Climate; the Ministry of Social Affairs; Eesti Pank; and 33 local governments. The new act will also make the Ministry of Regional Affairs and Agriculture and a further 46 local government units responsible for managing continuity.
The CER Directive entered into force on 16 January 2023 and must be transposed into Estonian law by 17 October 2024.
Essential services are those which have a significant influence on the functioning of society. If disrupted they would, among other things, pose a danger to human health and life and/or result in major damage to the environment. Another criterion for being classified as an essential service is if disruptions to the service would have a significant impact on the national economy and defense.
