Number of councilmen in small local governments to be reduced

RIGA - Saeima members today passed amendments to the law “On Elections of City and Regional Councils” in the final reading, reducing the number of councilmen in local governments with a population of up to 5,000 to 13.

The amendments will come into force the next day after they are promulgated, and the amendments will concern local governments elected in the 2013 municipal elections.

The Environmental Protection and Regional Development Ministry had originally proposed that the number of councilmen be reduced in all local governments, but the bill was turned down by Saeima which said that such sweeping changes could not be introduced with so little time remaining until the local government elections. Therefore the coalition agreed that the number of councilmen would only be reduced in small local governments.