NordenBladet — In its first issue in 2022, Kauppapolitiikka magazine focuses on industries’ roadmaps towards meeting the climate objectives.Finland is the first country in the world where different sectors of industry have prepared roadmaps for the transition to low-carbon economy. Sustainable development is one means to support competitiveness. Kauppapolitiikka deals with the relationship between economic growth and climate actions, too, debating which of the two is accelerating the other.
At the beginning of today’s sitting of the Riigikogu, Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine, made a video address before the members of the Riigikogu. Three drafts were deliberated at the sitting of the Riigikogu.
The Riigikogu passed a Resolution
The Riigikogu passed the Resolution of the Riigikogu “Appointment of a Member of the Estonian Public Broadcasting Council from among Members of the Riigikogu” (550 OE), submitted by the Cultural Affairs Committee. Indrek Saar was appointed as a member of the Council. The current member of the Council Jevgeni Ossinovski resigned on his own initiative. 71 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the Resolution.
A Statement of the Riigikogu and a draft Resolution were not supported
The Riigikogu did not support the Draft Statement of the Riigikogu “On Estonia’s National Interests in the Negotiations on the ‘Fit for 55’ Climate Package” (526 AE), submitted by Members of the Riigikogu Priit Sibul, Urmas Reinsalu, Mihhail Lotman, Helir-Valdor Seeder, Heiki Hepner, Tarmo Kruusimäe, Üllar Saaremäe, Aivar Kokk, Sven Sester, Kalle Grünthal, Peeter Ernits, Henn Põlluaas, Uno Kaskpeit, Riho Breivel, Anti Poolamets, Jaak Valge, Ruuben Kaalep, Alar Laneman, Kert Kingo, Leo Kunnas, Paul Puustusmaa, Andres Metsoja and Merry Aart. 25 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the draft Statement and 42 were against.
The interpellators’ justification was that, considering the significant impact of the issue, it was important to formulate a political approach at the level of the statement of the Riigikogu regarding the principles the Republic of Estonia should follow in presenting its positions connected with the abovementioned proposal. In the opinion of the initiators, giving a mandate to the Government’s positions at the level of the EU Affairs Committee is not sufficient.
The Riigikogu has approved the Fundamentals of Climate Policy until 2050 with a plenary decision. The ‘Fit for 55’ climate package has a wide-ranging impact on the competitiveness of business, as well as on the consumers, home owners and employees in Estonia.
During the debate, Merry Aart (Estonian Conservative People’s Party), Andres Metsoja (Isamaa), Raimond Kaljulaid, Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa), Tõnis Mölder (Centre Party) and Yoko Alender (Reform Party) took the floor.
The Riigikogu did not support the Draft Resolution of the Riigikogu “Making a proposal to the Government of the Republic “To eliminate the restrictions put in place to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 disease”” (527 OE), submitted by the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction. It made a proposal to the Government to lift immediately the restrictions in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The result of voting: 20 votes in favour and 39 against.
During the debate, Priit Sibul (Isamaa) and Hanno Pevkur (Reform Party) took the floor.
During the open microphone, Ruuben Kaalep, Peeter Ernits, Heiki Hepner and Tarmo Kruusimäe took the floor.
NordenBladet — The number of unemployed jobseekers decreased by 61,500. The number of new vacancies reported in February totalled 122,400. In all, the number of unfilled vacancies amounted to 242,400, which is 81,800 more than a year ago.At the end of February, a total of 265,600 unemployed jobseekers were registered at the Employment and Economic Development Offices and municipalities participating in the local government pilots on employment. This is 61,500 less than a year earlier, but 17,400 more than in February two years ago. The number of unemployed jobseekers was down by 8,100 from the previous month. Of the unemployed jobseekers, 140,800 were customers of municipalities participating in the local government pilots on employment. The number of unemployed jobseekers also includes those fully laid off. These figures are from the Employment Bulletin of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment.At the end of February, the number of people laid off was 35,300 in the whole country, which was 37,300 fewer than at the same time the year before. The number of people fully laid off totalled 26,800, representing a decrease of 28,800 from February the year before. The number of people fully laid off decreased by 2,300 from January.103,800 unemployed in the long termThe number of long-term unemployed — that is those who had been unemployed without interruption for at least a year — amounted to 103,800, up 7,700 on the previous year. The number of unemployed jobseekers aged over 50 was 103,300, or 16,700 fewer than at the same time a year earlier.The number of unemployed jobseekers aged under 25 totalled 28,200, representing a decrease of 10,700 from February last year. Of the unemployment periods of youths, 57.6 per cent ended before reaching three months between January and February. This is 5.9 percentage points less than the year before.Increase in new vacanciesThe number of new vacancies reported during February totalled 122,400, or 43,800 more than in February the previous year. In all, the number of unfilled vacancies in February amounted to 242,400, which is 81,800 more than a year ago.At the end of February, the number of persons covered by services included in the activation rate amounted to 111,400, down 3,800 on the previous year. These services include pay subsidies, labour market training, work trials and self-motivated studies.Statistics Finland: The trend of the unemployment rate 6.8%According to the Labour Force Survey issued by Statistics Finland, in February the number of people in employment was 89,000 more than on the previous year. The trend of the employment rate was 74.0%, which was 3.3 percentage points higher than in February the year before. According to the Survey, the unemployment total was 185,000, which is 40,000 less than a year ago. The trend of the unemployment rate was 6.8%, or 1.2 percentage points lower than the previous year.Key differences between Employment Service Statistics and the Labour Force Survey This information is based on the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment’s Employment Service Statistics and the Labour Force Survey of Statistics Finland. The Employment Service Statistics of the Ministry are compiled on the basis of the information in the Employment and Economic Development Offices’ customer register, while the Labour Force Survey of Statistics Finland is based on sampling. In the employment service statistics of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment persons that are not in employment relationship or employed in business are listed as unemployed. Persons fully laid-off but not full-time students are also categorised as unemployed in the Employment Service Statistics. The Labour Force Survey of Statistics Finland has a stricter definition of being unemployed: a person is unemployed if he or she has actively sought employment during the preceding four weeks and is available for work over the coming two weeks. The figures of the Labour Force Survey of Statistics Finland are internationally comparable and thus they are the official Finnish unemployment statistics. Further information on the differences in the statistics https://tilastokeskus.fi/til/tyti/tyti_2019-09-13_men_001_en.html
NordenBladet — The policy guidelines and prioritisations were prepared particularly with funding decisions and project planning and evaluation in mind and to support the preparation and regional implementation of the health and social services reform.The preparation work was carried out in extensive cooperation with a range of operators, drawing on the feedback from clients.Policy guidelines for information management intended for all health and social services organisationsThe policy guidelines for information management are intended for all health and social services organisations to guide the ongoing development work and, in particular, to prepare the health and social services reform. The guidelines are meant primarily for service organisers, service providers, national operators and information system suppliers, but they also take the client’s perspective into account. The guidelines will affect a number of operators, and they are fundamental and long-term in nature.Prioritisation used in operational and financial planning and in project planning and guidancePrioritisation of areas for development will be used for purposes such as operational and financial planning as well as project planning and guidance, for example in the health and social services reform and the Sustainable Growth Programme for Finland. The guidelines will be used for projects under Finland’s Sustainable Growth Programme.The areas for development are examined from three key perspectives: digital services for people in general, digital services and information management solutions for professionals, and digital services for management, guidance and supervision.By having prioritised areas for development, wellbeing services counties can prioritise, for example, their measures related to the preparation of the health and social services reform in situations where it is not possible to promote all reform measures simultaneously.The policy guidelines for information management in healthcare and social welfare, along with the prioritisation of areas for development, will be maintained annually. They will help to reduce the risk of overlapping development work and to support cooperation and the guidance of development projects.The published materials are available in the shared workspace for cooperation groups for healthcare and social welfare enterprise architecture.Shared workspace, in Finnish (yhteistyotilat.fi)
NordenBladet — The EU General Affairs Council will meet in Brussels on 22 March. Items on the agenda for the meeting include preparations for the March European Council, changes to the Regulation on the statute and funding of European Political parties and political foundations, the European Semester and the progress of the Conference on the Future of Europe. Minister for European Affairs Tytti Tuppurainen will represent Finland at the meeting.The General Affairs Council will discuss the draft conclusions of the European Council meeting to be held on 24–25 March. In that meeting, the European Council will discuss Russian military aggression against Ukraine, security and defence, energy, economic issues, COVID-19 and external relations.
Today at 3 p.m., Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk will make an address to the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia), which can be watched in a live broadcast.
President of the Riigikogu Jüri Ratas said that today Ukraine was important to everybody, because Ukraine was currently fighting for the peace and values of the whole Europe. “It is our duty to help and support them at all levels – politically, with weapons, by assisting war refugees and imposing additional sanctions on Russia,” Ratas underlined. He thanked all the people in Estonia who had already given their contribution and added that Ukraine would need the support and help of the Estonian people in the future as well.
Ratas recalled that, a week earlier, the Riigikogu had adopted the Communication in which it had expressed its support to the defenders and the people of the state of Ukraine in their fight against the Russian Federation that had launched a criminal war, and called on showing absolute support to Ukraine in its war for maintaining its freedom, sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The address of the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada begins at 3 p.m. It will be in Ukrainian and it will be live streamed with simultaneous interpretation on the web.
Video recordings of the sittings can be viewed onRiigikogu YouTube channel. (Please note that the recordings will be uploaded with a delay.)
NordenBladet — The Climate Policy Roundtable will hold its 14th meeting on Tuesday 22 March 2022. It will discuss the climate plan for the land use sector, which is due to be circulated for comments in the next few weeks. The Roundtable will consider whether the proposed set of measures is balanced and effective and how fairness should be taken into account in the plan. The Roundtable is chaired by Prime Minister Sanna Marin.As stated in the Government Programme, during this Government term the land use sector will be even more closely linked to the planning and implementation of the national climate and energy policy. The climate plan for the land use sector is being prepared under the coordination of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. It will include measures to reduce climate emissions from the land use sector and to strengthen carbon sinks and carbon pools so that the effects on climate change will be at least three metric tonnes of CO2 equivalent. The climate plan for the land use sector is being prepared in coordination with the Medium-term Climate Change Policy Plan (KAISU) and the Climate and Energy Strategy.
NordenBladet — The Ministry for Foreign Affairs publishes for the first time its long-term plan for Finland’s international climate finance, extending up to 2026. Finland’s international climate finance will increase nearly twofold during this government term compared to the previous term, and a larger share than before will be allocated to critical climate adaptation measures in developing countries. More attention will be paid to business cooperation as strong investments of the private sector will be needed to achieve the climate objectives.Finland’s international climate finance is funding channelled from Finnish development cooperation appropriations to climate action in developing countries. The plan, published now for the first time by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, demonstrates how the funding for developing countries will increase in accordance with the Government Programme. International climate finance will increase nearly twofold during this government term compared to the previous term, according to the plan an increase of 93 per cent. Climate finance will reach its peak next year, and the funding is expected to rise up to EUR 249 million. After this, the planned fundingwill continue at an annual level of approximately EUR 200 million until 2026.“Climate finance is one of our obligations under the Paris Agreement. We will take determined action to increase climate finance until 2026 and focus on comprehensive solutions. With this public finance plan, we emphasize the importance of different funding channels,” says Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari.Climate finance aims to respond in a balanced way to the challenges of climate change mitigation and adaptation. The aim is to slow down climate change and help people adapt to its inevitable consequences, such as extreme weather events. The funding consists of grant-based, investment-based and loan-based assistance. It is estimated that, as set out in the Government Programme, from 2022 onwards grant-based climate finance flows will be equally split between adaptation and mitigation.In addition to the level and distribution of the funding, the plan presents the objectives, impact, allocation, monitoring, reporting and communication of climate finance. The plan also explains how a growing amount of private funding can be used alongside public funding.Growing climate finance is an opportunity for Finnish actorsClimate finance can achieve broad-based results: it will lead not only to emission reductions but also to continued carbon sequestration. It can help to prevent disaster-related deaths, support communities in vulnerable situations to adapt to climate change , and mobilize private funding. Growing climate finance is also an important opportunity for Finnish companies and other actors. A significant part of the funding will be channelled via reliable international finance institutions and civil society organisations. Team Finland actors assist Finnish businesses in grasping new business opportunities created by the growing climate finance flows. “We are developing our support functions to better respond to the needs arising from the expertise, products and interests of Finnish operators in the emerging markets. We will intensify the renewal of partly fragmented financial instruments and consider developing a thematic call for funding,” Skinnari says.Read more in the climate finance plan (in Finnish)BackgroundFinland’s public international climate finance is funding channelled from Finnish development cooperation appropriations to climate action in developing countries. In its audit in summer 2021, the National Audit Office of Finland recommended the Ministry to prepare a climate finance plan. The Development Policy Committee published its own report on the matter in January 2022.Climate finance is guided by a number of international agreements and policies, the most important of which are the UN Framework Convention on Climate change, the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Government Programme entries on financing are based on international agreements.
NordenBladet — Minister of Defence Antti Kaikkonen will attend the EU’s Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on 21 March 2022.The aim of the meeting is to endorse the EU’s Strategic Compass at the joint meeting of the EU foreign and defence ministers, after which the matter will be discussed by the EU Heads of State or Government at the European Council on 24 to 25 March 2022. The Strategic Compass is a strategic steering document for the EU’s security and defence cooperation that sets objectives for the next 5 to 10 years.Ukraine’s Minister of Defence will attend the defence ministers’ informal dinner via remote connection. The ministers will discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
NordenBladet — The Citizens’ Pulse survey commissioned by the Government shows stress and concerns about Finland’s security and economy brought on by the crisis in Ukraine. The 33rd round of the survey was moved up by two weeks and the questions were modified to take into account the current situation.The survey showed an increase in stress, especially among 15–29-year-olds and 60–74-year-olds. Citizens’ sense of crisis is now at a similar level to where it was at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and when the Omicron variant became the dominant strain of the virus. A total of 45 per cent of the respondents were concerned about the effects of the crisis in Ukraine on Finland’s security, while around 58 per cent were concerned about its impact on the economy. Almost half of respondents – 48 per cent – were very concerned or fairly concerned that the war could escalate further.Trust in the Government, political parties and the media has increased significantly, by about 10 percentage points since the previous survey. The majority of citizens are strongly in favour of supporting Ukraine. Nearly 90 per cent of the respondents approve of the economic sanctions imposed by the European Union on Russia, even if they may have significant detrimental effects on Finland. Similarly, almost 85 per cent of Finns would be prepared to receive a considerable number of Ukrainian refugees if necessary.Citizens express need for more information, strong willingness to helpJust over half of the respondents expressed the need for more information on how to prepare for a crisis or incident and how to help those affected by it. Around half of the respondents felt that they were at least somewhat inadequately prepared for a crisis. Almost nine out of ten respondents would be prepared to do volunteer work in the event of a crisis if asked to do so by the authorities.At the same time, concern about COVID-19 has dropped to its lowest level since the start of the pandemic, and compliance with health security measures has clearly declined. Satisfaction with the authorities’ COVID-19 communications has increased considerably, from 48 to 58 per cent. Around half of the respondents would get a fourth vaccine if the health authorities recommended it.
Finland is the first country in the world where different sectors of industry have prepared roadmaps for the transition to low-carbon economy. Sustainable development is one means to support competitiveness. Kauppapolitiikka deals with the relationship between economic growth and climate actions, too, debating which of the two is accelerating the other.