On Thursday, 26 September, the Saeima amended the Law on the Financing of Political Organisations (Parties), "freezing" the financing of political parties. These changes were initiated by the Budget and Finance (Taxation) Committee of the Saeima.

The changes provide that in the next year the state budget funding for a political organisation (party) shall be calculated and allocated based on the minimum monthly salary in 2024.

It is proposed to freeze funding in order to contribute to the reduction of public administration expenditures and to be able to provide the necessary funding for priority measures in the next year's budget. As one of the compensatory measures, it is planned to leave the financing of political parties at the level of this year, emphasises Jānis Reirs, Chair of the Budget Committee responsible for the amendment.

According to the Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau, the state budget funding for political parties and their associations in 2024 totals EUR 6.65 million.

The law stipulates that funding from the state budget is allocated to political organisations that received more than two per cent of votes in the last parliamentary elections. The funding is linked to the amount of the minimum wage, thus raising it also means increasing the state funding of the parties.

Saeima Press Service