Russia considers new laws on animal cruelty, family leave and shorter work week

Every day, many events occur around the world that are simply impossible to follow in the news stream. That«s why we gather the main stories in this digest. Today, we summarize the events of 28 January.

Proposed fines for promoting animal cruelty

A draft law has been developed in the State Duma that provides for administrative fines for promoting cruel treatment of animals. The document has already been sent to the Russian government. Details were shared by Ksenia Goryacheva, First Deputy Chair of the State Duma Committee on Education.

«People see how calls for cruelty are spread on social media, how groups of dog hunters are created, how this is discussed as a normal practice—torturing a cat or a dog. At the same time, the police often respond: formally there is a prohibition, but no liability. This gap needs to be closed,» Goryacheva explained the initiative«s goal in a conversation with TASS.

The fine for such an offense is proposed to be:

• for citizens — from 5,000 to 10,000 rubles (approx. $140–$280 at current rates);
• for officials — from 10,000 to 20,000 rubles (approx. $280–$560);
• for legal entities — from 30,000 to 50,000 rubles (approx. $840–$1,400).

Justifying cruel treatment of animals will be considered any public recognition of such actions as correct and worthy of support. A «call» is understood as any actions inciting cruelty, including creating, displaying, and distributing materials promoting violence against animals. The ban on such propaganda is written into federal law, but fines are not yet specified.

Proposal for a «joint» parental leave in Russia

A new type of parental leave has been proposed in Russia, which would allow close relatives to help young mothers without taking unpaid leave. The initiative was put forward by Sergey Rybalchenko, Chairman of the Commission on Demography, Protection of the Family, Children, and Traditional Family Values of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation (OP RF).

«Among the ideas I would now propose to consider is to give working grandmothers and fathers the opportunity to take child care leave during the period when the mother is still on maternity leave,» said the head of the OP RF commission.

Child care leave is formalized only after maternity leave ends (70 days after childbirth in a normal pregnancy). Also, such leave can be taken not only by the mother.

«And it turns out that relatives, in order to help a young mother at this time, must take unpaid leave. I believe it is necessary to eliminate this situation and help them,» Rybalchenko noted in a conversation with TASS.

He added that such support is needed because a family may have several other children who also require care. At this moment, the child«s mother may be in a perinatal center. Also, he said, a woman may be experiencing postpartum depression, and she also needs the support of a loved one at this time.

Proposal to reduce work week to 30 hours

A draft law to reduce the work week to 30 hours for one parent in large families has been submitted to the State Duma. The document is published in the electronic database of the Duma. The initiative was developed by deputies from the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) and Senator Elena Afanasyeva.

«The bill... proposes to supplement part one of Article 92 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation with a provision establishing the right of one parent with three or more children to reduced working hours—no more than 30 hours per week,» states the explanatory note.

According to the Russian Labor Code, the normal work week is 40 hours, and many parents of large families cannot afford a nanny or help from grandparents. The authors of the initiative are confident that shortening the work week will improve the quality of life for large families and Russia«s demographic policy.

Proposal for pensioners to receive an annual 13th pension

The introduction of a 13th pension for retirees is being discussed in Russia. State Duma Deputy Sergey Mironov spoke about this in more detail.

«The 13th pension is a deserved and very necessary gift for pensioners who support the president and the special military operation. Such a payment will help compensate for the lag of pensions from the level of real inflation,» the parliamentarian believes.

It is planned that by the New Year, each pensioner will receive an additional payment equal to the old-age insurance pension, but not less than 1.5 times the subsistence minimum. In 2026, its amount will be 24,432 rubles (approx. $680).

In addition, deputies propose quarterly indexation of payments.

«We propose to increase pensions not once a year, but every three months... We will achieve both a new approach to indexation and the introduction of the 13th pension,» the parliamentarian summarized.

Schools to switch to new curriculum, university diplomas to change

Russian schools are planned to be fully transitioned to unified state textbooks. According to Russian Minister of Education Sergey Kravtsov, this will happen within three to four years.

Changes will also occur in the higher education system. The Ministry of Science and Higher Education is discussing the possibility of removing mentions of general qualifications from diplomas. The document proposes indicating only specific specializations.

«In the transition to the new model of higher education, the abandonment of fixing general qualifications in diplomas—those that do not denote the direction and profile of a graduate»s training—is being considered. In the diplomas of those who have received basic higher and specialized higher education within the pilot project to change the levels of professional education, specific, employer-understandable qualifications will be indicated,« the ministry noted.

Professions in the document will be designated as «chemical expert,» «mining engineer,» etc. This will help employers better understand whom they are hiring.

The Ministry of Science and Higher Education reported that the Russian president has expanded the pilot project, and now the government will approve not only specializations but also professions for graduates.

Diplomas of bachelors and masters who have already completed their studies will retain their status.

Authorities explain which websites will be blocked in the country

From March 2026, Russia will begin blocking websites with online sales of tobacco and nicotine-containing products without a court order. This was reported by Anton Nemkin, a member of the State Duma Committee.

«From 1 March 2026, the law on the extrajudicial blocking of websites with online sales of tobacco and nicotine-containing products comes into force. The state is consistently closing channels of remote trade in goods whose turnover is directly restricted by law, especially considering that the internet remains one of the key sources of access for minors to such products,» explained Nemkin.

This will speed up the process and prevent domain changes. Website and social media owners will also be required to monitor content.

This approach strengthens control over the online circulation of socially sensitive goods and develops age verification tools, making the digital space safer.

Fire breaks out at five-star hotel in Courchevel

A five-star hotel, Grandes Alpes, caught fire at the French ski resort of Courchevel. About 100 people were evacuated from the building.

«Sixty firefighters and 50 pieces of equipment are deployed in Courchevel to extinguish the fire at the Grandes Alpes hotel. About a hundred people, including clients and staff of the establishment, were evacuated. The evacuation proceeded calmly, no one was injured. All evacuated clients were able to be accommodated in other hotels at the resort,» says a message from the prefecture of the Savoie department on social network X.

According to authorities, the fire started on Tuesday around 19:00 local time (approx. 21:00 MSK) in the hotel«s attic. According to the statement, the firefighting operation is expected to take a long time due to the specifics of the building»s roof.

Russian tourist found dead in Balinese hotel

A Russian man was found dead in a hotel in the tourist area of Ubud on the island of Bali. Information about this appeared on the portal Bali Post.

The tourist«s body was discovered during the day. The windows of his room drew attention because the light had been on for almost 24 hours. A witness found the man lying face down, and the body had already begun to acquire a bluish tint.

«The evening before, cries for help were heard from the deceased»s room, but upon inspection, he was found in a sitting position, and no signs of a threat to his life were noticed,« the article states.

The scene was examined by police and forensics experts, after which they suggested that the cause of death was cardiac arrest. There were no signs of physical violence or struggle on the body, nor any damage in the room.

It is known that the man had been living in the hotel since June of last year and regularly extended his stay.

The body was sent for further actions in accordance with established protocols for foreigners. The police are cooperating with relevant services and diplomatic missions.

Pregnant woman gives birth in one minute at Yakutsk perinatal center

A woman arrived at the hospital and went into labor right at the registration desk. The child was born in one minute but sustained an injury, according to the Yakutia Ministry of Health on its Telegram channel.

«Within one minute, at 10:34, a rapid (precipitate) delivery occurred in the lobby of the admissions department. The child was immediately transferred under the supervision of specialists from the neonatal intensive care unit, where all necessary specialized medical care was provided in full,» the message states.

It is reported that doctors discovered the baby had a fracture of the right parietal bone of the skull. He is under 24-hour observation by specialists.

«A service check will be conducted immediately to establish all the circumstances of the incident. Based on its results, the necessary measures will be taken,» the Ministry of Health noted.

Scammers extort money under pretext of blackout

Criminals have begun extorting money from Russians using a new method. They pretend to be area maintenance workers and inform residents of apartment buildings that an electricity shutdown is supposedly planned.

The fraudster also clarifies that he is ready to drop a notification about the electricity shutdown into the mailbox, but for this, the person needs to confirm their personal data, according to RIA Novosti.