The Assembly spent 200 million lek on MPs' per diems, fuel, and rent

2026-03-28 08:31:00, Politikë CNA

The Albanian Parliament made public on Friday the analysis of the implementation of the institution's budget for 2025, where the financial benefits deriving from the status of deputy amount to 200 million lek or 44.2 percent of the institution's total operating expenses.

These include reimbursements for telephone expenses, fuel, per diems within the country, honoraria for participation in parliamentary committee meetings, and covering housing rent for MPs who do not live in Tirana.

These expenses are considered additional financial benefits over the salary for MPs and are sanctioned in the "Status of MPs" and the Assembly's decision "On the treatment of MPs".

Meanwhile, expenses for travel abroad, tickets, per diems, and accommodation have cost the budget 60 million lek for 2025, an amount that the Assembly names as a 'significant' subset in the operating expenses item.

The Assembly's budget is divided into two budget programs; the "Legislative Activity, Diplomacy and Parliamentary Control" program and the supporting program "Planning, Management and Administration".

According to the Assembly's analysis, the legislative program budget occupies the largest specific weight, including expenses for salaries and contributions of MPs and political staff; financial benefits of MPs deriving from the status of MP; expenses for trips abroad, organization of conferences, reception and escort of delegations, payments for translators and external experts.

Salaries and social contributions in the actual budget amount to approximately 1.2 billion lek.

"The composition of human resources (according to the actual number for 2025) is: MPs account for 32% of the actual number for 2025, political staff 14%, civil servants 44% and support employees account for 10% of the total actual number," the analysis states.

In the operating expenses item, 11 million lek were spent on honorarium payments to external experts in investigative or special commissions, 16 million lek on payments for the execution of court decisions, maintenance of electronic systems and office equipment, 49 million lek, and 14 million lek for office maintenance. Another 28 million lek were spent on water and electricity bills, transportation expenses and stationery purchases.

Last year, the Assembly made several investments, mainly in information technology, including 30 million lek for the transcription of the Assembly's audio-video data based on artificial intelligence, 5.6 million lek for the implementation of the system for interaction with the public, and 1.2 million lek for the creation of a new application, named "The Assembly of Albania."

These investments also included the purchase of two vehicles worth 14.5 million lek and office equipment and furnishings worth 23 million lek, which include ceremonial carpets, lighting for the halls of parliamentary committees and furnishing the offices of the new permanent committees, which began work in September 2025./reporter