Friday

29th Mar 2024

Lithuania election puts pro-austerity PM on way out

  • Vilnius: Lithuania's parliamentary elections look set to unseat Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius ruling party (Photo: FromTheNorth)

Parliamentary elections in Lithuania on Sunday (28 October) look to have unseated Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius' austerity-driven government to make way for a coalition of left-leaning opposition parties.

The vote comes amid a deepening recession and an exodus of young people seeking work in other countries.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Get the EU news that really matters

Instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

Lithuania joined the EU in 2004 with a population of 3.3 million. Eight years later and the population has dropped below 3 million, a first since it broke away from the Soviet Union over 20 years ago, reports Reuters.

The trio of opposition parties, led by the Social Democrats, has promised to reverse the trend and increase government spending in a move to spur the economy and create jobs.

Raising the minimum wage, increasing the tax burden on the wealthy, and delaying euro entry to 2015 were among the opposition's campaign promises.

Exit polls from 94 percent of polling stations on Sunday show the Social Democrats with 38 seats in the 141-seat parliament. Kubilius' Homeland Union Christian Democrats came in second with 32 seats.

But a coalition between the Social Democrats and the left-leaning Labour and Order and Justice parties would give them a total of 79 seats.

Social Democrat leader Algirdas Butkevicius, who is also the party's candidate for Prime Minister, told reporters on Sunday that a coalition partnership is under negotiation.

"Every party has the right to decide they’d prefer to work with someone else and notify the other partners," said Butkevicius.

Kubilius' government is aiming to reduce its deficit in 2013 to below the European Union 3 percent ceiling, down from 9.4 percent in 2009. The country will need to borrow some 7 percent of its GDP next year, or €2.17 billion, in order to refinance its debt.

His government is the first to complete a four-year term in office since the nation won its independence in 1991. He also helped avert national bankruptcy and increased GDP to nearly 6 percent last year.

The country has been struggling with deepening poverty, a 13 percent unemployment rate, and high-energy prices.

Government plans to build a new nuclear power station were also scrapped in a recent referendum. The station would have decreased energy dependence on Russia’s Gazprom but opposition leaders objected to the high costs and have instead vowed to improve trade relations with its former master.

Meanwhile, the coalition’s promise to increase government spending may deepen its deficit, say some critics.

Russian-born millionaire Viktor Uspaskich, who leads the Labour Party, says he may seek to increase the budget deficit above the EU limit.

President Dalia Grybauskaite, who must appoint the new prime minister, has objected to the spending pledges.

Ukraine slams grain trade restrictions at EU summit

Restrictions on Ukrainian agricultural exports to the EU could translate into military losses in their bid to stop Russia's war, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky warned EU leaders during their summit in Brussels on Thursday.

Difficult talks ahead on financing new EU defence spending

With the war in Ukraine showing no signs of ending any time soon, EU leaders will meet in Brussels on Thursday and Friday (21 and 22 March) to discuss how to boost the defence capabilities of Ukraine and of the bloc itself.

Opinion

Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Rather than assuming a pro-European Labour government in London will automatically open doors in Brussels, the Labour party needs to consider what it may be able to offer to incentivise EU leaders to factor the UK into their defence thinking.

Latest News

  1. Kenyan traders react angrily to proposed EU clothes ban
  2. Lawyer suing Frontex takes aim at 'antagonistic' judges
  3. Orban's Fidesz faces low-polling jitters ahead of EU election
  4. German bank freezes account of Jewish peace group
  5. EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania
  6. 'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told
  7. Moscow's terror attack, security and Gaza
  8. Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Join EUobserver

EU news that matters

Join us