Heated exchange at meeting between conservatives and Valys: “I never allow myself to be humiliated”

Finance minister-designate Taurimas Valys said he never allows anyone to humiliate him unfairly, following a tense first meeting with opposition Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD) lawmakers, LRT reports.

“I follow a simple principle—I never let anyone humiliate me without cause, especially not an opposition party that has no interest in our success,” Valys told journalists at the Seimas on Tuesday. “I believe I answered all the questions, I feel good, and the results regarding budget formation will show in time.”

Asked if he felt belittled during the session, Valys said some questions from the conservative faction lacked objectivity and clarity.

Ingrida Šimonytė, a former finance minister and TS-LKD representative, said Valys appeared unprepared for the meeting. “It seems we now live in times when people no longer understand what it means to be a public politician. This is a job where you are asked questions that are not always pleasant, sometimes even seemingly unfair, but you must answer them,” she told reporters.

Šimonytė added that no one asked Valys irrelevant questions unrelated to his prospective role. “Anyone who watched this meeting, whether a former student or a teacher, knows the phrase ‘just something general.’ But ‘just something general’ is not how a finance minister should respond to specific questions.”

Prime minister-designate Mindaugas Sinkevičius last week presented his cabinet nominees, stating that the new government would prioritise strengthening national defence, noting that Europe is currently at war and Lithuania must be strong, prepared, and reliable.

President Gitanas Nausėda on Monday signed a decree confirming the composition of the 21st government. The previous cabinet led by Ingrida Ruginienė resigned after the ruling coalition was reshuffled, and Sinkevičius announced his decision to form a new cabinet. The current coalition consists of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party, the Democrats “For Lithuania” and the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union (LVŽKŠS) factions.