MOSCOW, September 27 (Itar-Tass) —— The Duma Committee on Regulation and Procedural Organization is prepared to look into proposed amendments which establish a strict dress code in the building of the State Duma, Chairman of the committee Ildar Gabdrakhmanov told Itar-Tass on Thursday. The Duma rules of procedure stipulate that Duma members should come to the Duma dressed in office clothes, but regrettably, the deputies do not observe the rule, Gabdrakhmanov said.
The problem might concern a broader range of people, including members of the Duma apparatus, he noted. Certain work should be done to improve the situation, he added. When these proposals are formulated on paper we will look into them, Gabdrakhmanov said.
MP Raisa Karmazina (United Russia), who is one of the initiators of the debates on the dress code, told Itar-Tass that she was going to propose a number of amendments to the Duma rules of procedure. Once the rules of procedure stipulate that the deputies' clothes should confirm to their status, it is necessary to specify then what an office style is, " Karmazina said.
The responsibility for the right image of an MP should be vested with the leadership of Duma factions, she said. As an example, she mentioned LDPR and the Communist party factions, whose deputies, unlike their colleagues from A Just Russia faction, never wear jeans and T-shirts inside the Duma. “There is only one faction - A Just Russia, the deputies of which are not properly dressed, Karmazina said, referring to MP Ilya Ponomaryov, who permanently wears jeans in the Duma building, although most of his colleagues from A Just Russia wear the right office clothes, Karmazina admitted.
"Being public people entails certain responsibility for our image, including clothes as well. An MP's clothes should be strict, rather than being sports clothes or evening gowns one wears when going out," Karmazina stressed.