Martin Helme

Martin Helme (born 24 April 1976) is an Estonian politician and current leader of the Conservative People's Party (EKRE). From 2019 to 2021 he was the country's Minister of Finance. Political views Helme's views have been described as eurosceptic and populist. As one of the key figures in EKRE, Martin Helme advocates for national conservatism. He has been an opponent of Estonia's membership of the European Union and the use of the Euro as the country's currency. He has claimed that immigration is endangering the sovereignty of European states, including Estonia. Helme has been a vocal critic of the UN's Migration Pact. Helme, then a board member of EKRE, caused controversy in 2013 for his views on immigration. During a TV interview about riots in socially segregated suburbs in Sweden, he said that "Estonia shouldn't allow things to go as far as in England, France and Sweden. Our immigration policy should have one simple rule: if (they're) black, show the door. As simple as that. We shouldn't allow this problem to emerge in the first place". The Estonian translation of "if it's black, show the door" rhymed as "Kui on must, näita ust"; it gained widespread notoriety and became one of the main slogans connected to EKRE. In March 2019, Helme defended himself by saying that he had made the comments in 2013 before he was a politician, but nonetheless refused to condemn or retract them, stating that he would always stand against mass immigration. In the area of civil rights, Helme has campaigned against the passing of the Cohabitation Act in Estonia, which entitled same-sex couples to register as civil partners. He later campaigned to repeal the act.