Saeima removes MP expense rules, plans separate law

Latvia’s parliament, the Saeima, has approved amendments removing rules on lawmakers’ expense compensation from its Rules of Procedure, with the issue intended to be regulated under a separate law, LSM reports.

The changes do not set new compensation amounts or eligibility conditions. They move the rules to the Law on Remuneration of Officials and Employees of State and Local Government Institutions, which already governs MPs’ salaries. The Rules of Procedure, by contrast, govern the organisation of parliament’s work.

Andrejs Judins of the New Unity party, who chairs the Saeima Legal Affairs Committee, previously said compensation was a matter of remuneration and should therefore be regulated by the remuneration law. Work on amendments to that law has begun, but the solution will most likely have to be developed and adopted by the next Saeima.

The amendments also clarify the election procedure for members of the Saeima Presidium and other officials. If only one candidate is nominated for a post, there will be no ballot-paper vote. If there are more candidates than positions, a candidate must receive the most votes and at least an absolute majority of MPs present to be elected.

During the 14th Saeima’s term of just under four years, more than one million euros in state funds was paid to MPs for transport and housing expenses. KNAB also reviewed the compensation system and found that its rules create risks of unjustified claims and dishonest use of public funds. A petition on ManaBalss.lv calling for the compensation to be abolished gathered more than 15,000 signatures.