Now the President, the Speaker of the Seimas and the persons temporarily holding these positions, the Prime Minister and his deputy are obliged to be guarded by VAT officials around the clock.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister I. Šimonytė and Speaker of the Seimas V.Čmilytė-Nielsen registered amendments to the Law on Management Protection, which, if adopted, would protect only the President 24 hours a day.
Persons holding the office of the Prime Minister and the Speaker of the Seimas would not be protected in their free time from the implementation of official and informal visits, meetings or functions.
To the store – without security
Thus, according to V.Čmilytė-Nielsen, for example, it would be possible to go to the store without protection.
Paulius Peleckis / 15min photo / Victoria Čmilytė-Nielsen
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“This is just one simple example, there are more in their daily lives,” he said 15min said the Speaker of the Seimas.
She noted that the Speakers of Parliaments and Prime Ministers of other countries are protected more easily, and this practice could be applied in Lithuania as well.
“In my year and a half, I have been in contact with practically all the Speakers of the Parliaments of the European Union and it has become clear that most of them, especially in the Nordic countries, are protected more easily without allocating so much state resources.
Most of them, especially in the Nordic countries, are stored more easily without allocating so much state resources.
In Estonia, by the way, as well. Therefore, I think that it would be time to simplify the protection of the Speaker of the Seimas and the Prime Minister in Lithuania as well, ”commented V.Čmilytė-Nielsen.
According to the proposed procedure, the Speaker of the Seimas and the Prime Minister would be protected “during foreign visits, official meetings and when directly performing the functions for which protection is granted to them”.
Also at their own request or at the reasoned request of the services in the event of a security threat.
Safety of residence
However, the residence of all persons belonging to the leadership – the Speaker of the Seimas, the Prime Minister and the President – would be protected 24 hours a day.
Such legal regulation, according to the initiator of the amendments, would allow to protect the persons belonging to the management in all cases when they may be endangered by security.
Those in management should be respected the right to reside without the constant supervision and physical presence of VAT officials.
“In other cases (free from official and informal visits, meetings or functions), the right to privacy of persons belonging to the management should be respected, including the right to live without the constant supervision and physical presence of officers of the Security Guard,” the draft law states. in the explanatory memorandum.
It is proposed that the new procedure for the storage of the Speaker of the Seimas and the Prime Minister, after its approval by the Seimas, enter into force on 1 September this year.
The head of the VAT will express his opinion to the members of the Seimas
VAT Director Rymantas Mockevičius has not yet commented extensively on the registered amendments.
“There are political decisions, members of the Seimas and will decide. And if we ask an opinion in committee, we will express it. “ 15min he said.
R. Mockevičius noted that now the persons belonging to the management are protected everywhere – at work, at events, at home, during holidays.
Photo by Lukas Balandis / 15min / Rymantas Mockevičius
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During the last term of the Seimas, parliamentarians had the idea to abolish the mandatory protection for the Speaker of the Seimas altogether, but it was not implemented.
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