Olekas proposes tighter rules for conduct in Lithuania’s parliament

Lithuanian parliament Speaker Juozas Olekas has proposed tighter rules for conduct in the chamber, including restrictions on food, drink, signs and clothing. Opposition politicians and some members of the governing coalition say the proposals are too strict, LRT reported.

Olekas wants to ban eating, drinking and smoking in the chamber, although smoking is already prohibited there. He has also proposed banning posters, flags and clothing related to the matter under debate. Visitors in the public gallery would have to remain quiet and not show approval or disapproval.

Olekas said a meeting with the speaker of the German parliament had prompted him to consider the changes. He said rules there were more regulated and that the European Parliament had a tidier environment. He also suggested that members could drink water outside the chamber.

Some lawmakers said drinking at work was reasonable and did not cause disruption. Conservative Radvilė Morkūnaitė-Mikulėnienė said there were limits to what people would bring to the chamber, while Liberal Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen said members might need coffee or water during long working days.

The proposed rules are not yet in force, but posters have already disappeared from members’ desks, where flags and postcards remain. Olekas said the chamber should be a workplace, while Morkūnaitė-Mikulėnienė noted that even stickers could express personal political preferences.

Democrat Domas Griškevičius also opposed the proposals, saying the existing rules ensure order and that not every expectation needs to be written down. Čmilytė-Nielsen said lawmakers’ shouts were part of parliamentary work, and that visitors were more often surprised by lawmakers’ reactions than the other way around.

The parliament’s board has set up a working group to review whether changes to the rules are needed. Previous parliaments have seen disputes over flags and other political expressions, including during debates on partnership and the removal of former MP Neringa Venckienė’s legal immunity.