Linas Jegelevičius
The generally mistrusted Lithuanian legislature, Seimas, may soon become a more attractive employer. According to preliminary calculations, the salary of an ordinary Seimas member (who does not hold additional positions) is set to increase from 2 183 euros to 3 781 euros during the 2024-2028 term.
Mindaugas Skritulskas, a member of the ruling Homeland Union-LCD (HU-LCD) in the 2020-2024 Seimas, who seeks reelection, remarked to BNN that
the salaries of Seimas members had been intact since 2008, a year of economic austerity.
“Legislators did not raise them, fearing public backlash. The issue was very sensitive politically. We had a situation when all the other salaries grew but not those of lawmakers,” he said.
The MP from Palanga says he held various leadership positions before being elected to Seimas in 2020 and would earn more than in Seimas.
“In Seimas, my salary is just over 2 500 euros. When I speak with young people in business, they tell me that, among other reasons, the low salaries of Seimas members discourage them from engaging in politics or running for Seimas,” Skritulskas emphasised to BNN, adding: “Seimas members are among the lowest-paid politicians and civil servants in Lithuania.”
The HU-LCD legislator believes that MPs’ salaries should be pegged to the average salary in the country.
Speaking to LNK News, Liberal MP Eugenijus Gentvilas, half-jokingly said that his salary is so “high” that he browses ads to see where he might invest his money.
However, younger politicians admit that, with the unimpressive salary, they face greater financial burdens.
Lukas Savickas, a representative of the Democratic Union “For Lithuania” (Vardan Lietuvos) in 2020-2024 Seimas, admitted that he lived from pay-check to pay-check as a Seimas member.
“We have a mortgage, and like everyone else, we felt the impact of uncontrolled inflation during this term, which made monthly payments increase. There were months when it really felt like living from pay-check to pay-check,” L. Savickas told LNK News.
So, what will the new salaries be?
In the new term, the Speaker of Seimas will earn €8 748,46 gross (€5 292,82 net). Currently, this amount is €4 798,80 gross (€2 903,27 net). The First Deputy Speaker will receive €7 677,22 gross (€4 644,72 net), up from €4 315,20 gross (€2 610,70 net). Seimas committee chairpersons will earn €7 141,60 gross (€4 320,67 net), an increase from €4 036,20 gross (€2 441,90 net).
Elders of parliamentary factions will also see pay raises, depending on the size of the faction. For example, the elder of a faction with seven to ten MPs will receive €6 605,98 gross (€3 996,61 net), up from €3 720 gross (€2 250,60 net). If the faction has more than 40 members, the elder will receive €7 320,14 gross (€4 428,68 net), previously €4 073,40 gross (€2 464,41 net).
The Prime Minister will earn €8 748,46 gross (€5 292,82 net) in the new term.
Despite these increases, some argue that Seimas members’ salaries should have been raised less. In terms of the ratio between a member’s salary and the average national wage,
Lithuania’s parliamentarians will soon rank among the highest-paid in Europe.
“In other countries, the ratio typically falls between two and three times the national average salary. In our case, it will be closer to three or four times the average. That’s why I abstained from voting on this law,” said Jurgis Razma, a representative of the ruling Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD), in an interview with LNK and Delfi.lt.
As the new PM, Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, the chairwoman of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP), the winner of general election held on the 13th of October, would earn roughly 5 300 euros, almost half of her current salary as a member of the European Parliament.
The Seimas Chancellery has announced that members not re-elected for the 2024-2028 term will receive severance pay, totalling up to 575 000 euros (including taxes).
Meanwhile, the Seimas Chancellery’s Research Department published interesting analysis of legislative activity in the outgoing Seimas.
During the 2020-2024 term, Seimas adopted 317 fewer legal acts compared to the 2016-2020 term (3 278 acts). Laws constituted most of all legal acts passed in both terms 74.81% in the current term and 74.19%in the previous term.
Despite the decrease in total acts, the 2020-2024 Seimas was quite productive, averaging 7.3 legal acts per session, the second-highest productivity rate in Seimas history. A total of 4 079 draft legal acts were registered, and 2 961 were adopted, with an effectiveness rate of 68.6%. The highest effectiveness was in the 1996-2000 term (75.4%), and the lowest in the 2008-2012 term (51.6%).
“I am not aware of the statistical details, but the majority of legislative initiatives passed the first stages of their deliberation,” M. Skritulskas said.
Interestingly, government led the legislative process in the 2020-2024 term, however, registered 528 fewer draft acts than in the previous term, 2016-2020. A whopping 88.23% of its proposed acts were adopted. The president also saw a slight increase in the number of registered and adopted draft acts, with adoption rates of 90% and 87.97%, respectively.
The number of legal acts adopted under urgency or extreme urgency decreased significantly, making up just 14.25% in this term, down from 21.04% in the previous term.
As reported, the LSDP emerged victorious. Six parties surpassed the electoral threshold and will divide 70 seats: Social Democrats with 18, Homeland Union with 17, “Dawn of the River Nemunas” with 14, Democrats “For Lithuania” with eight, the Liberal Movement with seven, and the Farmers and Greens Union (LVŽS) with six.
LSDP leader Blinkevičiūtė expressed a preference for a ruling coalition with the Democratic Union “For Lithuania” and the Farmers and Greens Union (LVŽS). However, her vice-chairman, Gintautas Paluckas, said the party aims to form a coalition of around 80 MPs from the current opposition.
Meanwhile, Saulius Skvernelis, leader of the Democratic Union “For Lithuania” suggested that a coalition with the Liberal Movement would be more predictable than working with LVŽS. Skvernelis had been associated with LVŽS during the last two election cycles but left to form his own party after a falling-out with the LVŽS leadership.
However, LVŽS chairman Ramūnas Karbauskis has stated that cooperation with “For Lithuania” would only be possible if Skvernelis were not part of the government.
An additional 71 members will be elected from single-member constituencies.
In the first round, only eight candidates secured seats, with the remaining 63 seats to be decided in runoffs on the 27th of October.
Several smaller parties failed to meet the 5% electoral threshold, including the Lithuanian Poles’ Election Action-Union of Christian Families (3.89%), National Unification (2.87%), Lithuanian People’s Party (2.64%), Peace Coalition (2.20%), Party of Regions of Lithuania (1.90%), Green Party of Lithuania (1.68%), Union of People and Justice (1.38%), and Party “Freedom and Justice” (0.75%).