Latvia: President proposes freezing wages of heads of state companies

Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics has submitted to the country’s parliament, the Saeima, amendments that would freeze the wages of top management in state-owned enterprises (SOE), LETA reports. Under the proposal, the wages of top executives at state and municipal companies would be frozen until the end of 2026. Rinkevics stressed that the remuneration of top…

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Latvia: MPs fail to criminalise corruption in public procurement

The Latvian parliament, the Saeima, has rejected proposed amendments that would have introduced criminal liability for prohibited agreements in public procurement, LETA reports. Prosecutor General Juris Stukans said that the Prosecution Office (LRP) would continue trying to convince MPs of the need for such legislation to prevent corruption and facilitate criminal investigations. The Corruption Prevention…

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Latvia: Gas storage hub to open for Lithuania, Estonia, Finland

The Latvian parliament, the Saeima, has approved in final reading amendments that will allow Lithuania, Estonia, and Finland to store strategic gas reserves at the underground gas storage facility in Incukalns, LSM reports. The three Baltic States have earlier signed solidarity agreements on gas supplies. The amendments will also free the operator of the Incukalns…

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Latvia: Russian-speaking MPs refuse official language tests

Russian-speaking MPs representing the Latvian opposition party, For Stability, have been fined repeatedly for failure to speak the official state language sufficiently, LSM reports. The State Language Centre (VVC) has issued several administrative fines to MPs representing For Stability for not using Latvian to the extent necessary for the performance of their professional and official…

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