Lithuania in the News
3rd July 2016
Prominent Lithuanians’ Input to the Brexit Debate
Vytenis Andriukaitis covering his face when
Nigel Farage was holding forth. Photo courtesy skynews.com
Statements by some Lithuanian political figures regarding the Brexit issue have achieved high prominence in the electronic social media internationally.
Much commented on was the action the Lithuanian member of European Parliament (MEP), Vytenis Andriukaitis, who is the EU Commissioner for Health and Food Safety. Andriukaits could not help but hide his face with his hand when the chief British Brexit proponent Nigel Farage declared during his tirade to MEPs “that some MEPs had never done a proper job in their lives”. Andriukaitis had in fact been a cardiac surgeon before he took up politics and had taken part in the first heart transplant operation in Lithuania.
Australian TV devoted significant time to comments by Lithuania’s President Dalia Grybauskiatë and Lithuanian MEP Antanas Guoga. The latter is actually an Australian Lithuanian, who currently resides in Lithuania, has taken up politics and had been elected to the European Parliament.
Antanas Guoga challenging Nigel Farage to a one million euro bet.
Photo courtesy Antanas Guoga Twitter
Farage had bet £1,000 that Britain would vote for Brexit. Guoga then upped the stakes by betting €1million that the Brexit vote would fail! This action again achieved international prominence in the social media. Since Farage failed to take up Guoga’s challenge, Guoga did not have to pay up when Britain voted for Brexit.

Further information:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-06-30/brexit-facepalm-politician-explains-'despair'-at-farage/7556008
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jun/29/eu-health-commissioner-explains-farage-facepalm-vytenis-andriukaitis
http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/681421/Nigel-Farage-challenged-1-million-bet-Brexit-Britain-leaving-EU