On Thursday, 12 January, the Saeima adopted in the final reading amendments to the Law on the State Border of the Republic of Latvia, according to which truck drivers will have an option to apply electronically for crossing the border between Russia and Latvia and thus avoid long queues near the border.

On Thursday, 12 January, the Saeima adopted in the final reading amendments to the Personal Identification Documents Law, according to which a new type of personal identification document – the identity card – will be introduced in Latvia and will be broadly accepted instead of the passport.

The Presidium of the Saeima decided today to schedule the annual foreign policy debate in the Saeima for 26 January.

Members of the 11th Saeima established 40 groups for interparliamentary relations last year.

Last year, the Saeima received 7,091 submissions, almost two thousand more than in 2010.

Since convening for its first plenary sitting on 17 October, 11th Saeima has adopted 53 laws, including 5 new laws and amendments to 48 laws.

As Christmas approaches, a busy and eventful year is coming to an end. Hence we cherish this warm family holiday for bringing peace into our bustling everyday lives, making us forget our worries and calling on us to have faith, love and hope.

On Wednesday, 21 December, members of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Saeima elected Ojārs Kalniņš (Unity) as the new Chairman of the Committee. Kalniņš was the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee during the previous convocation of the Saeima.