Lithuania

On the May 11, Lithuania celebrates The Day of Respect for the Taxpayers. On this occasion, the Lithuanian Free Market Institute (LFMI) stresses that a public sector that serves its citizens and creates value is an expression of respect for taxpayers.

According to the annual “Rainbow Europe Map” by the ILGA-Europe, Lithuania ranked 34th among 49 European countries in terms of legal protections for LGBT+ persons in 2020.

At the end of 2021, the European Commission (the EC) released a \"Proposal for a council directive on ensuring a global minimum level of taxation for multinational groups in the Union\".

Keeping you updated on the stances of CEE governments on the Russian invasion in Ukraine.

Preventing gold-plating is once again reinstated by the EU as an important measure to reduce barriers to the single market. The LFMI, in cooperation with other European think-tanks, presents a study \"Gold-Plating: How to Identify and Avoid\".

EU citizens are collecting signatures for a petition demanding a universal, unconditional income for everyone. What does this mean? Everyone will have a living wage, regardless of what type of work they do or what contribution they make to the society.

Inflation is often referred to as a tax, imposed without parliamentary approval, without legislation and without considering the consequences. Today’s inflation is special: printing money seemed to be pretty much the only way to respond to the pandemic and to finance rising public spending.

Right before Christmas the EC presented a directive proposal targeting the profits of large multinational companies. The new rules propose imposing a minimum corporate income tax of 15% on large companies.

According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and the European Commission, impact assessments should be the rule, not the exception. In other words, impact assessment should not be a right but a binding habit of the legislator.

‘To serve or to rule?’ – this is a dilemma we face as we reflect on the fundamental principles of “the scope of powers [of the state] shall be limited by the Constitution” and “state institutions shall serve the people” on the occasion of the Constitution Day.