Lithuania’s government teetered on the verge of collapse after a widening expenses scandal prompted a cabinet minister to announce her resignation.
(Bloomberg) — Lithuania’s government teetered on the verge of collapse after a widening expenses scandal prompted a cabinet minister to announce her resignation.
The Baltic nation’s ruling party leader, Gabrielius Landsbergis, said the departure of Education Minister Jurgita Siugzdiniene for her handling of expense payments would do little assuage the public as more such cases come to light.
He said his Homeland Union will meet later Friday to discuss the possibility of dissolving the government and calling an early election.
“I don’t see how the exit of one minister would make the situation more transparent, when about two thirds of the parliament members have done exactly the same,” Landsbergis, who serves as Lithuania’s foreign minister, told reporters in Vilnius. He demanded that the expense method be changed.
The political fallout in the nation of 2.8 million escalated after an investigative journalist uncovered a growing number of former municipal councilors, including current cabinet members, who were unable to produce expense receipts for reimbursed funds. The practice has triggered a public outcry and investigations by law enforcement officials.
Landsbergis will discuss the issue with his coalition partners in the coming days. Center-right Homeland Union has led an alliance with the Liberal Movement and Freedom Party in a cabinet under Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte since December 2020. The next election would take place in October 2024 at the latest.
The Liberal Movement leader, Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen, said Landsbergis’s proposal to weigh options was “rational,” though didn’t elaborate on whether to call a snap vote.
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