Lithuanian parliament votes to retain ethics official accused of plagiarism

The Lithuanian parliament has decided to allow Darijus Beinoravičius, a member of the State Ethics Commission (VTEK) accused of plagiarism, to remain in his position, LRT reports.

On Thursday, 39 lawmakers voted to dismiss Beinoravičius from VTEK, while four opposed the move. Under parliamentary rules, dismissal requires support from at least half of all 141 MPs in a secret ballot. The proposal to remove him was initiated by 35 parliamentarians, primarily from opposition factions.

Conservative MP Ingrida Šimonytė, presenting the motion, argued that VTEK’s role is to ensure ethical conduct among public servants, making it “extremely odd” for someone accused of ethical violations to serve on the commission. She noted that an investigation by Mykolas Romeris University confirmed Beinoravičius had submitted a plagiarised article to an academic journal in 2025. Though he resigned before disciplinary action could be taken, the university’s Academic Ethics Commission upheld the plagiarism finding.

Beinoravičius, who did not attend the parliamentary session, submitted a written statement denying wrongdoing. He claimed the issue stemmed from insufficient citations due to unclear journal guidelines, calling it an isolated error in his 25-year academic career. “No disciplinary measures were applied, even at the university level,” he wrote, insisting his work at VTEK remains “responsible and conscientious.”

The lawmaker also suggested the allegations were politically motivated, linked to his role on the board of Lithuania’s national broadcaster LRT, where he has been involved in discussions over the potential dismissal of its director general, Monika Garbačiauskaitė-Budrienė.

Ignas Vėgėlė, a member of the ruling Farmers and Greens Union, echoed this view, stating the push to remove Beinoravičius from VTEK was “clearly connected to the LRT board, not ethics.”