Latvia’s Constitution Protection Bureau (SAB) has received requests for access to official secrets to be provided to members of the Saeima Praesidium and four members of parliamentary committees, the bureau confirms.
At the same time, the bureau reports that requests to be provided with access to official secrets keep coming in from the Saeima.
In order to commence the necessary background checks and issue permits as quickly as possible, SAB has contacted the Saeima’s administration, requesting relevant documents about all deputies that require special permits to access official secrets.
In response to the incorrect information reported in the public space about Saeima committees that require deputies to have a special permit to access official secrets, SAB explains that
in accordance with the list of seats in the Saeima, all deputies working in committees that address topics linked to official secrets are required to have permits.
These committees include: Defence, Internal Affairs and Corruption Prevention Committee; Budget and Finance Committee; Human Rights and Public Affairs Committee; European Affairs Committee; Legal Affairs Committee; National Security Committee; Foreign Affairs Committee; Citizenship, Migration and Social Cohesion Committee; Public Expenditures and Audit Committee; Parliamentary Investigative Committee.
Personal background checks normally take three months.
If, for any objective reasons, it is not possible to complete the background check within three months, the is the option to extend the term for three more months.
Tot be issued with a permit, a person needs to fill in a form and submit a signed commitment letter, as required by requirements of the Cabinet of Ministers. The person is also required to submit two photos and details of their biography if this is the first time he or she applies for access to official secrets.
Because of the current geopolitical situation, background checks are performed especially carefully.