Pro-Kremlin websites published an article saying the Ukrainian parliament has adopted laws that will force Ukrainians to pay for a range of services that were previously free such as entry to libraries, museums and other cultural institutions and that parents would in future have to pay the full cost of kindergarten pupils’ meals.
A piece headlined “The Ukrainian State has been Destroyed. It Happened last Night” appeared December 25, 2015, the day after Ukraine’s parliament passed a draft bill envisaging new formulas for government funding of public services some of which are free and others such as theaters, which are subsidized.
But the relevant parliamentary bill, number 3628, cited by veteran pro-Kremlin dissemblers such as Politnavigator, Antimaydan and bbcccnn.com.ua does not mention imposing charges for libraries, museums etc. and gives responsibility for such funding to the cabinet of ministers.
The bill in fact boosted funding for museums and libraries. Parents already pay part of the costs of kindergarten school meals and the bill only made changes to a formula determining what proportion parents pay.
To verify this, it is possible to study the text of the Comparative table to the bill.
