Politics

 

Janne Strang Editorial: President Niinistö’s Election Non-Campaign

Finnish President Sauli Niinistö plays the role of international statesman this week when he meets the Russian and US Deputy Foreign Ministers in Helsinki, where the pair are having talks to try and repair the fragile relationship between their…

Janne Strang Editorial – Social Democrats Countdown to Abdication

A new poll by state-funded broadcaster YLE shows the Social Democrats losing ground. So how long until there’s regime change at the top of one of Finland’s grand old parties? After the announcement last weekend that the Social Democrats had…

Parliament Returns: It’s The Economy, Stupid

Finland’s Members of Parliament get back to work today after the long summer recess, with a busy legislative schedule ahead. The government has the economy firmly in its sights, and hopes to see more improvement as the country eases slowly…

Death Threats, Racial Abuse & Taunts of Sexual Violence: How Much Online Hate Should Politicians Expect?

When Finland’s parliament returns for the autumn session this week, politicians will face a continued barrage of hate mail, death threats and personal attacks. While Helsinki police tells News Now Finland they don’t keep specific statistics on the number of…

New Poll: Greens Still Finland’s Second Most Popular Party

A new poll conducted by Gallup for Helsingin Sanomat newspaper shows the Green Alliance is Finland’s second most popular party. If parliamentary elections were to be held now, the Greens would get 17.5% of the vote. The most popular party is…

The Finns Party’s New Alternative

Finland’s newest parliamentary group, the New Alternative, hopes to use its position in government to push for tax reductions for low and middle income earners, according to chairman Simon Elo. New Alternative broke away from Finns Party earlier this year,…

Divorce For Green Party Leader

The wife of the Green Party Chairman Touko Aalto, Johanna Pietiläinen, wants a divorce. Pietiläinen confirmed to Ilta-Sanomat newspaper that she filed a divorce claim with the District Court last week. The couple married on 5th August 2015. They have no…

Finance Minister: Finland’s Economic Growth is Strong

Finland’s Finance Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) says the country’s economic growth continues to be strong, and predicts the government will reach its goal of wiping out sovereign debt in 2019. Orpo made the comments following the first day of his…

Political Party Leaders’ Pay Boost Revealed

Have you ever wondered how much money political party leaders in Finland make? On top of their salaries for being members of parliament or government ministers, some parties also give bonuses to their chairpersons, according to a story in Uutisuomalainen…

Päivi Räsänen Considering Presidential Run

Former Chair of the Christian Democrat Party Päivi Räsänen says she is prepared to seriously consider a run to be President of Finland – if her party leadership requests it. The Christian Democrats currently have five MPs in parliament, including…

Latest News

Report: Finnish Embassy in Beirut ‘destroyed’ by blast

The Finnish embassy in Beirut has reportedly been ‘destroyed’ by the blast from a powerful explosion which rocked the Lebanese capital on Tuesday evening. Deputy…

Katri Kulmuni interview: Centre Party leader is down, but not yet out

Time might be running out for Katri Kulmuni’s short reign as leader of the Centre Party. Either that or she’s gearing up for a triumphant…

Contact tracing app launches in limited test phase

A new mobile phone application which helps public health officials track and trace cases of coronavirus is being launched on Tuesday for a month…

Morning headlines: Tuesday 4th August 2020

Contact tracing app launches in test phase today A new mobile phone application which helps public health officials track and trace cases of coronavirus is…

New airport coronavirus testing option: “All the processes were very smooth”

Officials at Helsinki Airport say that "all the processes were very smooth" on the first day of offering coronavirus tests for arriving passengers. Public health…

Linnanmäki coronavirus ‘mass exposure’ confirmed by city

The City of Helsinki is confirming a coronavirus ‘mass exposure’ event took place at Linnanmäki amusement park in the capital at the end of…

MP Petri Honkonen joins Centre Party leadership race

The Vice Chairman of the Centre Party Petri Honkanen has joined the race to be the next party leader, challenging incumbent Katri Kulmuni. He’s the second serious…

Young entrepreneurs: Twin brothers launching new Helsinki-Turku bus service

Two young entrepreneurs are set to launch a brand new bus service linking Helsinki and Turku with low-cost fares. Twins Henri and Eero Autio are just 21-years…