„I wouldn't call it an ultimatum. It's more of a consideration, and there's some heated debate because, ultimately, it's in our interests to have a solid budget to finance the state's essential needs, including defence.
I believe that we will resolve all the issues that have been discussed and that the tension and passion will subside,“ Paluckas told reporters in the Seimas on Monday when asked about the decisions made by Vardan Lietuvos (In the Name of Lithuania).
As previously announced last week, the board of the Democratic Union Vardan Lietuvos stated that the Seimas' failure to revoke the legal immunity of Social Democrat Arūnas Dudėnas violated the coalition agreement.
The party called on its major coalition partners, the Social Democrats, to rectify this mistake. Otherwise, according to Vardan Lietuvos's leadership, the Democrats may not support the planned changes to the tax system.
However, when asked how the Social Democrats could rectify the mistake made regarding Dudėnas, Paluckas said this would first need to be discussed with the coalition partners and lawyers.
„We will discuss this issue as well. Yes, a mistake has been made. Correcting it or finding a solution is not so simple because we are talking about the issue of immunity as a status in general (...) so that situations do not arise in the future where one colleague or another hides behind immunity because of a pre-trial investigation (...). So this is not such a simple matter, but we will have to discuss it seriously,“ said the Prime Minister.
„First of all, a legal analysis is needed, and the provisions of the (Seimas – ELTA) statute need to be examined. I believe that the Speaker of the Seimas will also present his view of the situation, as will the Democrats. Well, we will discuss this,“ he noted.
He does not believe that the Social Democrats' interpretation of the coalition agreement should be standardised
Paluckas stated that the failed vote on removing Dudėnas' legal immunity was a mistake, but Vardan Lietuvos emphasised that this was a violation of the coalition agreement. The Prime Minister points out that, in essence, the views of the Social Democrats and the Democrats on this issue are the same.
„Whether it is a mistake or a violation, there is no big difference because a mistake leads to a violation. The coalition agreement will certainly face many such tests in the coming period. The most important thing is to admit mistakes when they are made and to look ahead and think about how to move forward and avoid repeating them,“ he said.
However, there are different opinions within the Social Democrats. For example, the first deputy speaker of the Seimas, Juozas Olekas, told ELTA last week that he disagreed with Skvernelis' statements that the coalition agreement had been violated.
When asked if he saw a need to unify the Social Democrats' view and assessment of the coalition agreement, Paluckas disagreed.
„Why should we harmonise interpretations? We will sit at a coalition council meeting and discuss who sees what and the arguments. The most important thing, as I said, is to find a way to move forward. I do not doubt we will find such a way,“ he said.