Category Archives: Finland

Mikko Kinnunen appointed Finland’s first Ambassador for Hybrid Affairs

Ministry for Foreign Affairs  30.3.2018 6.00
PRESS RELEASE

On 1 April, Counsellor for Foreign Affairs Mikko Kinnunen will become the Foreign Ministry’s first Ambassador for Hybrid Affairs.

Mikko Kinnunen transfers to the new position from the Foreign Ministry’s Unit for Security Policy and Crisis Management, where he has served as Director of Unit.

“From the perspective of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, hybrid issues can be related to foreign and security policy, legal and commercial matters, strategic communications, also international cyber security cooperation, for example. In other words, in practice they can be linked with any or all of the activities that the Ministry and its missions abroad are engaged in,” Kinnunen says.

The Ambassador for Hybrid Affairs will build up the Foreign Ministry’s expertise in hybrid issues and help raise Finland’s profile on these issues with the international arena. The Ambassador will work in close cooperation with different authorities in Finland and support their involvement in international cooperation. The European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats, which was established in Helsinki last year, is naturally a key partner for the new Ambassador.

Hybrid warfare and the use of influence-seeking hybrid methods have attracted wide attention both in Finland and internationally. Finland, too, is a target of hybrid attacks and activities, and it has strengthened its capacity to detect and respond to hybrid threats.

“Hybrid methods are a new way of seeking to influence our security, and we must respond to these effectively,” says Minister for Foreign Affairs Timo Soini.

Dealing with hybrid issues is part of the work of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the network of Finnish missions abroad. This can involve detecting the use of hybrid attacks and activities targeting Finland, tackling these and taking part in international cooperation on hybrid issues.

Mikko Kinnunen has extensive experience of security policy and matters related to Russia and the former Soviet area. He has served as Finland’s Ambassador to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, and worked in the Embassies of Finland in Moscow and Washington and the Permanent Mission of Finland to the UN in New York.

Government proposal for the new Radiation Act submitted to Parliament

Government proposal for the new Radiation Act submitted to Parliament

Ministry of Social Affairs and Health  28.3.2018 14.11
PRESS RELEASE 43/2018

Government proposal for the new Radiation Act submitted to Parliament

The Government has submitted the proposal for the new Radiation Act to Parliament. The new Act would replace the current Radiation Act and would enter into force on 1 July 2018. The Act would implement the EU’s new Basic Safety Standards Directive concerning radiation safety. It would protect people’s health from the damage caused by radiation and prevent and reduce environmental damage and other detrimental effects caused by radiation.

The proposal would also amend the Health Protection Act, the Criminal Code of Finland, the Nuclear Energy Act, the Act on Healthcare Appliances and Supplies, the Act on the Market Surveillance of Certain Products and the Act on the Recognition of Physicians Monitoring the Health of Radiation Workers in Category A.

The Radiation Act as a whole will be reformed

The new Act would apply to the following exposure situations: radiation practices, existing exposure situations and emergency exposure situations. The EU’s Basic Safety Standards Directive lays down provisions on the responsibilities of the parties responsible for the use of radiation, on the safe use of radiation and on radiation safety in emergency exposure situations and existing exposure situations. The Act would clarify regulatory control and emphasise the risk-based principle in regulatory control.

The implementation of the Basic Safety Standards Directive requires Finland to make many structural and terminological changes to its radiation legislation. It was therefore appropriate to reform the radiation legislation as a whole in connection with the implementation of the Directive.

Exposure to radiation should be kept as low as possible

The new Act would emphasise that the overall benefit of radiation practices and protection measures would have to outweigh the detriment caused by them. Work-related exposure and the exposure of the general public should be kept at the lowest level practically possible in radiation practices and protection measures. In addition, exposure to radiation for medical purposes should be limited to the level that is necessary to achieve the results of the examination or treatment or to carry out the procedure in question.

The proposal would specify the provisions on targeting radiation not only at patients, but also at asymptomatic persons.

The Act would specify the regulation of exposure to natural radiation, such as exposure to radon in indoor air and exposure of workers to natural radiation, for example, in mines.

Responsible parties’ responsibility will be emphasised

The proposal for the Radiation Act emphasises the responsible parties’ responsibility and risk-based control. The proposed Act would impose on responsible parties a new obligation of conducting a safety assessment based on the risks involved in their activities. The safety assessment would involve assessing radiation exposures in the activities and identifying potential radiation safety incidents. Measures would also be presented to ensure radiation safety, prevent the identified potential radiation safety incidents and prepare for the occurrence of such incidents.

In all activities requiring a safety licence, responsible parties would have to consult a radiation safety expert when planning, implementing and monitoring safety protection measures concerning workers and members of the public, in accordance with the nature and extent of their activities. Responsible parties would also have to appoint a radiation safety officer to assist them. The officer would monitor in practice that staff at the place of work ensure radiation safety and follow regulations and guidelines.

The radiation safety expert and radiation safety officer would have to possess the qualifications and radiation protection expertise required by the Radiation Act. Training in radiation protection may be included in a higher education degree or completed as separate continuing education and training.

Statutes concerning exposure for non-medical purposes to be included in the Act

The new Act would include provisions on human exposure to radiation for non-medical imaging purposes, in which the main purpose of imaging is not to promote the person’s health. These include X-ray examinations to determine the age of immigrants, for example.

More efficient control of radon exposure

In the proposed Act, exposure to natural radiation, such as radon, would mainly be regulated in the same manner as exposure to radiation from other sources. This would enable improved control of radon exposure.

According to the new EU Basic Safety Standards Directive, the reference level for radon concentration is 300 Bq/m3 in dwellings, workplaces and other places with public access. If the radon concentration in the working area cannot be decreased below the reference level despite efforts, the responsible party would have to obtain a safety licence from the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) for its operations. The protection of workers from radiation should then be ensured in the same way as in all other radiation practices: for example, the radiation dose sustained by the worker should be determined on a regular basis and the results should be submitted to the Dose Register of radiation workers.

The Radiation Act and other statutes issued under it would provide more clearly how responsible parties have to notify the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of practices that may cause exposure to radon. Further provisions would also be issued on the obligations to report and limit radon concentrations.

Regulations on non-ionising radiation to be reformed

The Act would also reform the provisions concerning non-ionising radiation, although the Basic Safety Standards Directive does not concern non-ionising radiation. The reason for this is the rapid technical development of the equipment using non-ionising radiation and the large variety of its different applications. The reform would ensure the safety of non-ionising radiation applications and create a framework for efficient risk-based control.

As required by the Constitution, some provisions contained in decrees and the current instructions of the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority would be moved to the Act, as applicable. The Act would specify the current authorisations to issue decrees and would authorise the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority to issue regulations on certain detailed and technical matters.

Data utilisation and intelligent automation to boost the digitalisation of logistics

Ministry of Transport and Communications  28.3.2018 13.37 | Published in English on 29.3.2018 at 16.20
PRESS RELEASE

The Government has issued a resolution on the digitalisation of freight transport data. The aim of the resolution is to boost the digitalisation of the logistics sector and promote new business opportunities. It also paves the way for Finland as a hub for international transport and supports emission reduction targets in the transport sector. The resolution is part of the Government key project on building a growth environment for digital businesses.

“Digitalisation, urbanisation and growth of online business increase the importance of short-distance logistics. We must develop new consumer-oriented services and business models. The operating models of the sharing economy will also be adopted in freight transport,” says Minister of Transport and Communications Anne Berner.

“Finland is a global leader in promoting the “mobility as a service” thinking. It is important that this expertise will be utilised in freight logistics, too,” Minister Berner states.

She says that a lot of air is being transported nationally and internationally, in other words the transportation capacity is not being used to its full potential.

“This is expensive and inefficient for all the parties involved. More efficient use of the transportation capacity is also important for achieving the climate and emission targets,” she says.

Better utilisation of data is an essential question in digitalisation. The movement of goods must be directed by data.

The resolution includes four goals: Flow of information in and between the logistics chains must be substantially improved and the efficiency of short-distance logistics increased, efforts must be focused on developing intelligent automation in logistics and the digitalisation of ports must be boosted. National and EU regulation on information security and confidentiality of commercial, industrial and personal data must be carefully observed in everything that is done.

The set of measures in the resolution includes regulation, networked cooperation, promotion of tests and pilot projects, increase in the competence levels, and advocacy work in the European Union and on international forums.

The Ministry of Transport and Communications launched an open logistics digitalisation network in the autumn. The resolution was drafted together with the network and will be implemented in close cooperation with the sector.

Report: Banning coal in 2030 would affect only a few energy companies, while a ban in 2025 would cause significant costs for many

Report: Banning coal in 2030 would affect only a few energy companies, while a ban in 2025 would cause significant costs for many

Phasing out coal in energy production by 2030 would have only minor effects on energy companies, according to a survey commissioned by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment. However, this would require that the Greater Helsinki area have access to reasonably priced biomass for replacing coal in energy production.

Enforcing a ban on coal in 2025, on the other hand, would have serious economic impacts especially in Helsinki, Vaasa, Espoo and Vantaa, and coal would be replaced by biomass and to a significant degree by natural gas.

Pöyry Management Consulting submitted its report on the effects of phasing coal in energy production to Minister of the Environment, Energy and Housing Kimmo Tiilikainen on 27 March 2018. The Minister discusses the report results and the future of the coal phase-out project in press conference.

The Pöyry report focuses on the effects of phasing out coal in district heating networks and industry where coal has been a significant source of energy in recent years. Eight cities have large coal-fired units, accounting for 90 per cent of the coal used in energy production in Finland. Helsinki, Naantali, Espoo, Vantaa, Vaasa and Lahti topped the list in 2016.

Phasing out coal by 2030 would have cost implications chiefly in Vaasa and Helsinki, where measures to replace coal would have to start earlier than currently planned. The estimate is that the other coal-fired power plants could be replaced before 2030.

Banning coal in 2025 would have significant effects on district heat generation especially in Vaasa and Helsinki. It would have cost implications even in Espoo, Vantaa and Turku, but to a considerably lesser degree. The overall impact of phasing out coal by 2025 could grow to EUR 200 million in 2024–2033, based on the assumptions used in the study.

The report estimates that the price competitiveness of coal will decrease in the future. However, banning coal would cause power plants additional costs due to earlier replacement investments, potentially higher production costs, premature decommissioning of existing equipment and additional investments in existing power plans.

There will be a considerable market-driven drop in the capacity of coal-fired heat generation by 2030, while most replacement investments will take place in the mid-2020s. This will reduce the economic effects of the coal phase-out. It is estimated that the use of coal for energy will drop from 22 TWh in 2016 to around 5–7 TWh by 2025 and to 3.5 TWh by 2030, while the coal-fired district heat capacity will decrease from 2,055 MW to 1,100 MW by 2025 and to 480 MW by 2030.

Finland aims to phase out coal in energy production in the 2020s, according to the current Government Programme. The National Energy and Climate Strategy puts forth that a Government proposal on a transitional period for phasing out coal power by 2030 will be prepared during this government term. Minister Tiilikainen requested Pöyry Management Consulting to even consider a scenario where coal power is phased out by 2025.

GRECO issues new recommendations to Finland to prevent and combat corruption

GRECO issues new recommendations to Finland to prevent and combat corruption

The Council of Europe’s anticorruption body GRECO (Group of States against Corruption) has issued recommendations to Finland to prevent corruption among ministers, senior government officials and members of law enforcement agencies (the police and the Border Guard).

In the country evaluation carried out by GRECO, special focus was placed for example on the ethical principles and rules of conduct, conflicts of interest, secondary employment, declarations of interests and income, compliance with guidelines in practice, and awareness of corruption and its prevention among senior government officials, ministers and law enforcement authorities. Furthermore, post-employment waiting period practices, risk management, and whistleblower protection were among the topics examined by the evaluation team.

In its evaluation report, GRECO states that Finland should intensify its anticorruption work and emphasises that an expedited adoption of a national anticorruption strategy and its subsequent implementation would be a very welcome and positive step. The report pays special attention to the corruption risks that relate to privatisation in the forthcoming health, social services and regional government reform.

Six of the recommendations issued by GRECO to prevent and fight corruption in Finland concern senior government officials and ministers and eight of them law enforcement authorities.

GRECO recommends, for example, adoption of a code of conduct for ministers and other senior government officials and provision of related training, establishment of a formal system for review of the declarations of interests and development of the declaration procedures, and intervention in conflicts of interest that relate to the so-called revolving door phenomenon. The revolving door phenomenon refers to the movement of persons entrusted with top executive functions from the public sector to the private sector and vice versa. Furthermore, GRECO recommends that Finland take measures to ensure that the procedures for lifting parliamentary immunity do not hamper or prevent criminal investigations in respect of ministers suspected of having committed corruption related offences.

Regarding law enforcement agencies, GRECO recommends that the police and the Border Guard develop a dedicated anticorruption strategy or policy, compile a code of conduct and specify their guidelines for secondary employment, organise training on the prevention and combating of corruption, and reinforce ethical practices in their career-related processes. In addition, it is recommended that the police enhance their risk management, internal oversight, and procedures to be followed by their officials when taking up secondary employment.

When it comes to whistleblowing and whistleblower protection, GRECO recommends that the police and the Border Guard be obliged to report suspicions of corruption and that protection of these whistleblowers be enhanced. In connection to this, GRECO also recommends that the police and the Border Guard draw up guidelines on whistleblowing and provide related training.

The previous country evaluations concerning Finland were conducted in 2001 (focus on the independence of the judiciary), in 2004 (public administration), in 2007 (criminalisation of corruption offences and party funding) and in 2013 (risk of corruption in respect of members of parliament, judges and prosecutors). The on-site visit related to the fifth evaluation round was carried out in September 2017.

GRECO will publish the entire evaluation report on its website in English. A Finnish translation of the report will be published on the website of the Ministry of Justice (www.oikeusministerio.fi) later this spring.

Finland will report back on the action taken in response to GRECO’s recommendations by 30 September 2019.

Air pollution prevention in Finland

Government’s analysis, assessment and research activities
Financial benefits of reducing air pollution can be assessed with a new tool

Government Communications Department  27.3.2018 9.43 | Published in English on 27.3.2018 at 12.21
PRESS RELEASE 154/2018

Financial benefits of reducing air pollution can be assessed with a new tool

The Finnish Environment Institute has together with the National Institute for Health and Welfare and the Finnish Meteorological Institute developed a method for assessing the costs caused by air pollution and the financial benefits of reducing it. The benefits result from the reduction in adverse health effects. The tool can be used to support decision-making concerning air pollution control both at the municipal and at the national level.

Particulate matter that is harmful to human health is emitted from transport, energy production and wood burning by households. There are internationally established methods for calculating the adverse health effects. IHKU, the Air Pollution Damage Cost Model for Finland project, developed an easy-to-use tool for assessing the costs caused by air pollution and the financial benefits resulting from reducing air pollution in Finland. The tool can be used to support strategic decision-making concerning air pollution control both at the municipal and at the national level.

Compared with Central Europe, concentrations of particulate matter in ambient air are relatively low in Finland. However, even low concentrations of particulate matter have adverse effects on health. One of the central conclusions made in the project is that, by limiting emissions, it is possible to reach considerable financial benefits in public health in Finland, as well.  The greatest benefits can be achieved when the emissions from transport and wood burning by households are reduced in urban areas.

The majority of the costs caused by the adverse health effects are composed of the costs resulting from the shorter life expectancy. Costs also result from hospital visits and the lower capacity to work.

Final product is a tabular tool

The results of the project are based on a chain of many calculation models. First, the emissions were modelled and, based on them, the concentrations of particulate matter in ambient air. Next, the exposure of the population to particulate matter was modelled and, based on that, the health effects were calculated. In the end, the health effects were converted into damage costs. The examination was conducted on primary particulate matter and the most important gases forming secondary particulate matter (nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide and ammonia). The final product of the project is a tabular model describing the health costs that can be avoided by reducing emissions by one tonne. The costs have been estimated separately for transport, small-scale combustion by households and for power plants. Examinations at the national level also take into account the population density and the locations of the emission sources. The calculation methods have been chosen in a way that enables comparisons with examinations carried out elsewhere in the world as well as possible.

The effects of air pollution are not limited to adverse health effects. For example, air pollution reduces the diversity of nature. In the final report, the significance of these adverse effects has been assessed on the basis of a literature review.

The analysis was coordinated by the Finnish Environment Institute and it was implemented in co-operation with the Finnish Meteorological Institute and the National Institute for Health and Welfare. The study was part of the implementation of the Government plan for analysis, assessment and research activities for 2017. The steering group for the project had representatives from the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Ministry of Finance and from local authorities. Stakeholders were also heard regarding the development of the calculation model.

Crisis management now – resolving conflicts and building peace together

The 100-year-old Ministry for Foreign Affairs with its partners are organising a Crisis management now seminar in Kalasatama, Helsinki, on 17 May 2018. The event will present Finnish actors’ participation in the resolution of international crises and peacebuilding. The main theme of the seminar will be comprehensive cooperation between different actors in crisis areas in order to achieve sustainable peace.

Central government actors involved in crisis management (Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Justice) together with civil society and private sector representatives will present their cooperation in crisis management and peacebuilding in diverse and participatory ways.

Visitors to the event can, for example, try on Teatime Research’s virtual reality glasses and get an idea of what it would feel like if Helsinki was a conflict area similar to the one in Aleppo, Syria.

The Crisis Management Centre (CMC Finland) and other actors will tell about job opportunities in the field.

The Finnish CSOs attending the seminar are the Finnish Red Cross, Finn Church Aid, and the Wider Security Network (WISE). International organisations will be represented by the World Bank, which will present the Pathways for Peace report prepared in cooperation with the United Nations.

Finland is a pioneer in comprehensive crisis management and peacebuilding. In addition to military and civilian crisis management, crisis areas are supported by means of development cooperation, humanitarian assistance, mediation, and human rights and arms control policies. It is important that the various actors’ complement each other, because a number of different organisations and crisis management operations may be simultaneously active in the same crisis area. Coordination and cooperation enhance the effectiveness of crisis management activities and contribute to the building of sustainable peace.

You are welcome to the Crisis management now -event to see and experience how crisis management functions and how sustainable peace is built through cooperation – stabilising conflict areas calls for everybody’s contribution.

The event is open to all and free of charge. It will be organised in Kellohalli at the Abattoir complex in Kalasatama, Helsinki.

Finland seeks a leading role in the European battery market

Finland seeks a leading role in the European battery market

The demand for batteries will grow more than tenfold from 2015 to 2020, especially in response to the increasing use of electric transport and renewable energy. Business Finland has launched Batteries from Finland, a two-year activation programme for the battery sector to get Finland into the European and global battery networks.

Asia produces 80 per cent of the world’s batteries, especially primary batteries. Europe, too, has versatile expertise in battery technologies, and Maroš Šefčovič, Vice President of the European Commission in charge of Energy Union, encourages operators to develop safer batteries with longer lifetime. He emphasises the need to further develop the European batter expertise.

Finland has some of the raw materials and chemicals needed in the manufacturing of batteries. Now the goal is to master the higher value part of the chain, including the manufacturing and developing of battery cells. Finland will also invest in battery recycling.

“Finland has what it takes to build a significant battery cluster for raising added value in Finland. We can provide a unique combination of raw materials, processing and energy expertise in a reasonably-sized geographical area,” Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä says.

“Finland wants to be more than just the producer of raw materials. Our companies have competitive concepts and know-how throughout the value chain. The market is booming, and our primary objective is to get a slice of the new market, not to compete with existing operators. Business Finland sees here a great opportunity for Finland,” says Director-General Pekka Soini from Business Finland.

Finland is an attractive place for mining investments

The growing battery manufacturing sector needs new mining capacity, since at the moment there is not enough minerals to meet the rapidly growing demands, even with recycling. Finland is an attractive place for international mining investments.

“Finland has unique reserves of raw materials and strong geological and mining expertise. Finland is attractive for mining due to its good operating environment and one of the world’s most comprehensive geological databases. We have high levels of expertise in chemistry and material research, including analysis of global raw material chains. Finland has excellent opportunities to become a leading country in the European battery market,” says Director-General Mika Nykänen from the Geological Survey of Finland.

Transport and renewable energy drive battery market growth

Electric transport is a major contributor to the growth of the battery market. Emissions reduction targets increase the demand for electric cars, buses, bicycles and scooters, which are now available at more competitive prices. Many major cities have already announced plans to restrict the use of internal combustion engine cars in their city centres. Ferry transport is also going electric, followed by mining and forestry machines.

Another factor contributing to the battery market growth is grid-connected batteries. A problem with the renewable wind and solar energy is that energy is produced when the wind blows or the sun shine, but not necessarily at times when energy is needed.

“Batteries are increasingly used to replace peak-load power stations. Power stations have been necessary to cover peak load, but in the future it will be possible to deploy energy storage to replace at least some new power stations. Similarly, households, too, can use batteries and store solar energy, for example,” says Head of Industry, Cleantech & Bioeconomy Vesa Koivisto from Business Finland.

“From the perspective of sustainable development, battery recycling will be a key sector for development in the future. Recycling can also mean new second-life applications for batteries: electric car batteries, for example, could be re-used for home energy storage,” Koivisto says.

Batteries from Finland

Business Finland aims to accelerate the construction of a national battery ecosystem. The activities aim to contribute to improving the Finnish knowledge base and increasing Finland’s international competitiveness throughout the value chain from raw materials and battery cell manufacturing to various battery-related applications and services.

“Our companies have competitive concepts and know-how throughout the value chain. We have already a national knowledge base, thanks to Business Finland’s earlier innovation programmes promoting electric vehicles and green mining, among others. This base will serve as an excellent foundation for a new battery ecosystem,” says Director-General Pekka Soini from Business Finland.

“Products, services and business concepts related to electric transport and energy storage are developing at a rapid pace, and the expanding market naturally creates a lot of interest.

Business Finland is creating operator networks to access the European battery network and through it the global network. We also aim to attract foreign battery investments into Finland. In February, Business Finland invited 70 industry representatives to develop together the future of battery technologies in Finland. The event was extremely well received. Next, Business Finland and the companies involved will be planning measures to develop the battery market.

Finland’s first Action Plan on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities will strengthen the rights of people with disabilities

Finland's first Action Plan on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities will strengthen the rights of people with disabilities

Finland has published, for the first time, a National Action Plan on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The Action Plan will implement the UN Convention that entered into force in summer 2016. The aim is to strengthen the rights of persons with disabilities and to improve their opportunities for participation.

The objective of the Action Plan is to raise awareness of the rights of persons with disabilities and to take account of their rights in all activities in the different administrative branches and in society at large. Accessibility, availability and participation are essential when implementing the rights of persons with disabilities.

– Everyone is entitled to basic and human rights. However, there are groups of people who cannot use these rights until particular attention is paid to the implementation of these rights and special measures are carried out to secure the rights. Persons with disabilities is one such group. Therefore, we need the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as well as national actions. This is what Pirkko Mattila, Minister of Social Affairs and Health, stated at the publication launch of the National Action Plan on the UN Convention on 13 March.

The Action Plan contains 82 measures that the ministries are committed to implement. Part of the measures will be implemented during the current Government’s term of office. Some measures take a longer time to carry out.

There is much room for improvement in the implementation of the rights of persons with disabilities

According to a survey conducted last autumn, persons with disabilities felt, as a rule, that their rights are secured relatively poorly. The right to work was considered as the objective that was achieved least well. An adequate standard of living and social protection emerged in the survey as the primary issues to be rectified.

– Work and an adequate income are in a key position when we think about the opportunities of people with disabilities to live independently and to participate. I find it very important that working should always be economically profitable. We must remove people’s fear that their income will weaken if they start to work, said Minister Mattila.

– Safeguarding employment for people with partial work capacity is one of the Government’s goals, and it is being carried out by the key project Career opportunities for people with partial work ability. The key project is constructing, among many other measures, a linear model to combine pension and earned income, Minister Mattila continued.

Services are also part of social protection. The Social Welfare Act, and particularly the Disability Services Act, secure that persons with disabilities receive assistance in their everyday lives. The services will be further developed as part of the ongoing reform of regional government and health and social services.

Persons with disabilities participated in drawing up the Action Plan

A key principle of the Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities involves the inclusion of persons with disabilities in decision-making that concerns them. The Advisory Board for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (VANE) was responsible for drawing up the National Action Plan, and the Advisory Board will also coordinate the national implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The Advisory Board includes representatives of disability organisations, labour market organisations and the ministries with key significance to the rights of persons with disabilities.

Disability organisations and persons with disabilities were heard, as agreed, when drawing up the Action Plan. They provided important information on how the matters relating to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities should be primarily promoted.

Source Finlands website.

Finland to hold EU ministerial meetings in Finlandia Hall

Finland to hold EU ministerial meetings in Finlandia Hall

During Finland’s EU Presidency in 2019, Helsinki will host six informal meetings of ministers and dozens of meetings of officials. In line with the practice of recent holders of the presidency, Finland will hold all meetings to be paid for from the EU Presidency budget in a single location in the capital city.

Finlandia Hall was selected as the venue following a competitive tendering process. The choice of venue took into account the facility requirements specified for EU meetings, the costs and the venue’s availability on the dates in question.

“Having a centralised venue in the capital is an economically advantageous solution. It saves time, money and staff resources. For example, once the arrangements are planned and put in place, there is no need to dismantle or transfer them, as they can be used in most of the meetings. Having a venue in the centre of the capital also means that the best transport connections are close at hand,” says Head of the Secretariat for Finland’s EU Presidency Anja Laisi from the Prime Minister’s Office.

Finlandia Hall will host informal meetings of the finance, competitiveness, environment, agriculture and justice and interior ministers. A joint meeting of the foreign and defence ministers will also be held. In addition, Finlandia Hall will host meetings of officials.

All formal meetings of Heads of State or Government and of ministers will be held in accordance with normal practice in Brussels and Luxembourg during Finland’s EU Presidency. The idea is also that all informal meetings of Heads of State or Government arranged during Finland’s EU Presidency will be held in Brussels, with the EU responsible for both the arrangements and the costs.

Finland’s forthcoming EU Presidency will be its third and will cover the six-month period 1 July – 31 December 2019. Finland’s previous Presidencies were in 1999 and 2006.

Arrangements already well under way

The practical arrangements for the meetings to be held in Finland are the responsibility of the Secretariat for Finland’s EU Presidency, which has been set up in the Prime Minister’s Office.

“Up to the start of the Presidency there are twenty of us altogether. We are currently busy with the preparations that cover the Presidency as a whole, and putting together the meetings calendar and site arrangements. Now that the venue has been chosen, we can get up to speed with the details, too,” says Anja Laisi, who also led the Secretariat during Finland’s second Presidency in 2006.

For the second Presidency the total budget was EUR 75 million, at 2006 prices. A sum of EUR 70 million has been reserved for Finland’s EU Presidency in 2019. This covers all the costs of the Presidency, including additional personnel and the meeting arrangements.