Lithuania's prime minister has been accused of misconduct over trips abroad with her family
Lithuania’s High Commission on Official Ethics has stated that Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė committed a serious violation of the law while organizing official foreign visits. According to the commission’s findings, the official signed decisions to include members of her family in official delegations during trips to Italy and the Vatican. At the same time, the prime minister herself rejects the allegations and disagrees with the ethics body’s conclusions.
The VTEK ruled that the head of government violated the Law on the Coordination of Public and Private Interests when she included members of her family in the government delegation and approved the decision to pay for this trip using state budget funds.
This concerns Ruginene’s trips to Italy and the Vatican on February 6–10. The Prime Minister, along with her husband, attended the Olympic Games in Milan and Cortina. And on March 6–8, she traveled to the Vatican for a meeting with the Pope, accompanied by her husband, daughter, and son.
In both cases, Ruginene herself approved the composition of the delegations. According to the VTEK’s assessment, these trips were related to the private interests of her family members rather than the performance of official duties. The oversight body ordered the head of government to reimburse the expenses associated with her family members’ travel.
The Prime Minister’s spokesperson, Ignas Algirdas Dobrovolskas, stated that Ruginiene intends to challenge this decision in court.
"The Prime Minister has repeatedly stated that all decisions were made in accordance with applicable rules and protocol requirements. We believe that this case raises questions regarding the balance between legal norms and long-standing practice, so it is natural that this assessment will be challenged in court,” Dobrovolskas said.
News of the launch of an investigation into the Lithuanian Prime Minister’s foreign visits first emerged back in March.
LRT reports on the commission’s decision.
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