While there was discussion earlier on Wednesday to withdraw the controversial marriage referendum bill, Riigikogu constitutional committee chairman Anti Poolamets (EKRE) decided to put it to a vote later in the evening. Only 29 MPs voted for the referendum bill, drawing an end to the saga.

When the bill was finally put to a vote in the end of Wednesday's sitting, it received 29 votes for and 49 votes against, meaning the long-debated and controversial public referendum on the definition of marriage will not take place in April, as initially planned.

To start Wednesday's sitting, Center Party MP Andrei Korobeinik proposed the Riigikogu withdraw the lone agenda point, the EKRE political group did not support Center's proposal and constitutional committee chair Anti Poolamets continued with a presentation.

Riigikogu board members Henn Põlluaas (EKRE) and Helir-Valdor Seeder (Isamaa) proposed to reject the multiple protests made by the opposition in regards to not having sufficient time to present their 9,400 amendment proposals to the referendum bill. Siim Kallas (Reform) did not support their notion however and the board did not reach a consensus, leading to the protests going to a vote.

49 MPs voted for rejecting the protests, not enough to hit the majority against 48 votes against.

The Riigikogu board then decided to accept the opposition's obstruction as a device to oppose parliament, but noted that Riigikogu work should not be obstructed so extensively as the amendment proposals have done. Read more via ERR