The Secretariat of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine plays a key role in ensuring the work of the Parliament. Financial resources allocated annually from Ukraine’s state budget are needed to maintain its activities. In February 2024, the Secretariat reported on how it spent state funds in 2023.
In 2023, the state budget amounted to UAH 4,014,418.1 million. From this amount, UAH 2,717.3 million was allocated to the needs of the Verkhovna Rada’s Secretariat. This is only 0.07% of the total budget expenditures.
Let us consider in more detail how the Secretariat of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine used these funds in 2023.
First, UAH 1,208.4 million was allocated to legislative activities (this is 44.47% of the Verkhovna Rada’s expenditures in 2023). Of the spent funds, approximately UAH 770 million was allocated for the remuneration fund (salaries + single social contribution) for 401 MPs and their assistants, about UAH 12 million for the payment of services (except for utility services), and social benefits for MPs (travel, housing rent, expenses, related to the performance of MP powers).
UAH 823.7 million (this makes 30.31% of all expenditures of the VRU in 2023) was spent on the management of the affairs of the VRU’s Secretariat [Needs for implementation of organisational, informational, analytical, and logistical support of the VRU activities]. These expenses were mainly directed at maintaining the employees of the VRU Secretariat (1,063 people according to the staffing list), i.e., 1) approximately UAH 816 million for remuneration (salaries + SSC), 2) UAH 2.6 million for other services (except utilities), and 3) ≈ UAH 51,000 for transborder business trips of two employees of the Secretariat, as well as some other expenses related to the performance of the functional duties of the Secretariat.
UAH 242 million was allocated for the maintenance and servicing of administrative buildings of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in 2023 (this makes up 8.91% of all expenses of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in 2023). These funds covered a wide range of expenses, including salaries for administrative building management employees (about UAH 176 million), payment of utilities and energy sources (approximately UAH 57.1 million), services not related to utilities (≈ UAH 9 million), and other social benefits. The total area of administrative buildings is 80,608.3 square metres.
UAH 536,000 was allocated for the current repair of structures and buildings with a total area of 68.7 square metres. Among the repair works, there were such projects as the repair of balconies at 3a Sadova and 4 Shovkovychna Streets (UAH 142.3 thousand), emergency repair of the drainage system and asphalt covering within the territory of the administrative building at 6–8 Bankova Street (UAH 136,000), emergency repair of cold water supply pipeline at 11 Velyka Zhytomyrska Street (UAH 94,500), as well as restoration and arrangement of the well at the “Koncha-Zaspa” recreation centre to provide it with water supply (UAH 163,200).
UAH 157.5 million was allocated for transportation support for the VRU in 2023 (this makes up 5.8% of all expenses of the VRU in 2023). As of late 2023, there were 160 cars on the Carpool register. Early this year, the Carpool had 182 vehicles on its register, of which 24 vehicles were transferred to the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, but the Carpool received one Volkswagen car and one Agados special trailer. The total run of the fleet was 2,475.1 thousand km, which indicates the intensive use of vehicles. The cost of one hour of car operation is established at UAH 492.4.
The main motor transport expenses included the remuneration and extra charges of the Carpool employees, which amounted to approximately UAH 108 million, the use of goods and services, which cost about UAH 36 million, and other expenses.
UAH 119.6 million was allocated to create audiovisual works for the round-the-clock information marathon, in particular, the United News #UArazom programmes (this makes up 4.4% of the VRU’s expenditures in 2023). This became part of the Rada TV channel’s efforts to integrate into the state’s unified information policy during martial law, which started in 2022 when UAH 107.8 million was spent on the participation of the Rada TV channel in the TV marathon.
In 2023, almost all the allocated funds (UAH 120 million) were used — UAH 119.6 million (the cost of the contract with KinoKit company, which provided services). As part of the TV marathon, the Rada channel was on air for 1,247 hours, while the cost of one hour of airtime amounted to UAH 95,900. For reference, the Rada channel accounts for about 4 hours of 24/7 broadcasting).
However, funding such significant costs may raise questions about the intended use of the money. The main purpose of the budget programme and the Rada channel is to cover the VRU’s activities and inform the public about them. However, the TV marathon’s reporting does not always focus on the Parliament’s work. This may fall under inappropriate use of budget funds and potentially violate the budget legislation. An extremely large volume of content created greatly complicates the audit process. It makes it impossible to establish exactly how many hours of broadcasting were devoted to information about the activities of the Verkhovna Rada. The irony is that expenditures from the budget for content creation by the Rada channel increased by several hundred per cent during the years when the Verkhovna Rada stopped broadcasting its meetings.
UAH 43.5 million was financed for the Verkhovna Rada’s scientific and legal support (1.6% of the Rada’s expenditures in 2023). These are funds for maintaining the VRU’s Research Service (the legal successor to the VRU’s Legislation Institute). Most of these funds, approximately UAH 42.8 million, were used for the salaries of the service employees. The Research Service provided professional and advanced training for 1,325 people, namely MPs of Ukraine, their assistants, advisors, and employees of the VRU Secretariat. In addition, the service prepared 691 information and analytical resources.
UAH 43.1 million was spent on the production and distribution of television programmes covering the activities of the VRU (this makes up 1.59% of all VRU expenditures in 2023). These are expenses for funding the Rada TV channel, which ensures the creation and broadcasting of other informational materials on foreign and domestic policy issues.
UAH 28.4 million (1.05% of the Verkhovna Rada’s expenditures in 2023) was allocated to the financial support of the “Holos Ukrayiny” newspaper. These funds covered various newspaper needs, including printing costs, which amounted to UAH 6.1 million for the production of 262 issues during the year, with a total annual circulation of 7,547,000 pieces.
Also, UAH 23.5 million was spent on the payment of bonuses and scholarships of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (0.86% of all VRU’s expenditures in 2023). Of these, UAH 7.7 million was allocated to scholarships for 48 recipients: young doctors of science. In 2023, the amount of each scholarship was UAH 161,040 per year. UAH 15.8 million was spent on prizes for 94 recipients (50 prizes for young scientists and 44 for teaching staff of preschool, general secondary, vocational (vocational-technical), and out-of-school education institutions).
UAH 13.8 million was allocated to cover expenses for visits of MPs parliament abroad (0.51% of all expenditures of the Verkhovna Rada in 2023). This money funded 123 visits, during which 307 MPs visited other countries as part of business trips.
UAH 7.3 million (0.27% of all expenditures of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in 2023) was paid as membership fees to international organisations in which the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine acquired membership. There are six such organisations in total: the OSCE, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC), Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation (IPC), the Geopolitical 12+ Group within the IPC, the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ACEAH). Based on the decision adopted during the 42nd session of the ACEAH Inter-Parliamentary Assembly, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine was granted Observer status in the MA ACEAH.
UAH 3.3 million was spent on maintaining protocol events at the VRU (0.12% of the VRU’s expenditures in 2023). In 2023, 1,096 such events were held in the committees of the VRU, and the average costs for organising one event amounted to approximately UAH 3,000. These expenses are aimed at paying for services provided by the State Commercial Enterprise “Canteen of the Secretariat of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine,” which serves international events held in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
UAH 2.2 million (0.08% of the VRU’s expenditures in 2023) was spent on holding the PABSEC Sixty-second General Parliamentary Assembly, of which UAH 305.9 thousand was spent on purchasing equipment (4 units) to prepare the assembly. The PABSEC 62nd General Assembly was held in a mixed format and online in connection with the martial law in Ukraine and security issues. This resulted in the savings of UAH 3.1 million since UAH 5.3 million was allocated for the event. As part of this event, it was planned to meet 130 people from 13 member PABSEC countries, but only 38 came (92 people less).
The organisation and holding of official receptions of the Verkhovna Rada cost UAH 0.9 million (0.03% of VRU’s expenditures in 2023). Twenty-three receptions were arranged for delegations of international organisations, foreign parliaments, and guests of the VRU. In total, 304 people visited Ukraine at the VRU’s invitation, and the average cost of receiving one delegation was UAH 37,300.
