‘More police officers on the streets next year’

Pernavas said that with less officers caught up in administration, there will be more of them on the beat which will allow police officers to react more quickly to calls. A number of major structural changes in the organization of the police force would free up officers from administrative duties, Pernavas said.

“In particular, the administration in the district police chief headquarters and police stations will be reduced and optimised, there will be fewer employees in the administrative departments. A centralised book-keeping service will be set up, financial accounting management will be centralised, and personnel administration functions will also centralised – procurement as well,” Pernavas said.

“Unnecessary and costly buildings will be shut, watch-keepers will be transferred from the district police headquarters to the regions and managed centrally, officers who have worked there will be moved to the streets, into public and criminal police branches, in simpler terms – the reduction of seated positions will be continued,” he said.

Officers’ salaries will also be raised. Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius said that an additional €33 million in funding had been allocated to the Interior Ministry for 2016 and that the police will receive €10.4 million of that.

“The lowest level officers currently receive a minimum of €375, if I am not mistaken, and it should be increased in 2016 to €600. The middle level officers now receive a minimum wage of €425, it is planned that their salaries will be increased to €700,” the prime minister said.

Salaries will be raised for 2,500 officers. Pernavas added that the number of detention centres in operation would be cut in 2016 from 25 to 17 nationally.

“As we know, under the new Code of Administrative Violations there is no longer such a thing as administrative arrest, so we have estimated that there will be approximately 25% less people that need to be kept in detention. We believe that the excessive number of detention centres is really unnecessary – their maintenance costs are too high,” said Pernavas.