Lithuanian parliament committee approves controversial public broadcaster law amendments

The Lithuanian parliament’s Culture Committee on Tuesday approved draft amendments to the law governing the national public broadcaster LRT, despite opposition objections, BNS reports.

The committee’s four ruling coalition members voted in favour of the conclusions, while three opposition representatives either voted against or abstained. Conservative vice-chair Vytautas Juozapaitis stated the opposition fundamentally disagreed with the “rushed and non-transparent” process, announcing plans to submit a dissenting opinion.

Democrat Rima Baškienė criticised the draft as poorly prepared by a working group led by Seimas Speaker Juozas Olekas, forcing the committee to make extensive corrections. “But even now, too many errors remain to vote in favour,” she said.

Social Democrat Vytautas Grubliauskas acknowledged that while “not 100 percent perfect,” the marathon of committee meetings had led to compromises on many issues. Committee chair Kęstutis Vilkauskas called the process challenging but thanked all contributors, noting “no law is perfect.”

The amendments will now return to the full Seimas for debate, expected next week. LRT Director General Monika Garbačiauskaitė-Budrienė had urged the committee to delay its decision and hold an additional session to clarify the division of functions between LRT’s council, its newly established board, and administration—an issue also flagged by the Venice Commission.

The committee’s conclusions, spanning over 1,400 pages, follow 11 meetings and incorporate feedback from more than 150 MPs, 15 organisations, and 40 legal observations. Key changes include a redefined mission for LRT, the creation of a new governing board, an increase in council members from 12 to 15 (excluding a Tripartite Council appointee), and reduced council terms from six to four years. Stricter competence and reputation requirements for council candidates were also introduced, alongside mandatory open selection procedures.

Members unanimously rejected a proposal to restrict other media representatives from contributing to LRT content, preserving existing technical safeguards against frequency misuse. Editorial policy guidelines will now be set by the heads of radio, television news, and the online portal’s editor-in-chief.