NordenBladet — Minister of Science and Culture Antti Kurvinen has signed a decision by which Finland endorses the Davos Declaration. The Davos Declaration promotes and advocates interest in high-quality design and construction of built environments, which embrace cultural expressions of buildings and environmental planning while also fulfilling functional, technical and economic requirements. The Davos Declaration was originally published in 2018 in connection with the World Economic Forum.The Declaration encompasses both contemporary construction and cultural heritage within the existing environment and landscape. It emphasises the importance of a high-quality built environment that ensures environmental sustainability, and contributes to the health and wellbeing of all.“I consider it important that the State of Finland is active in the field of architecture. It is up to all of us to make sure our built environment is sustainable, healthy and pleasant to live in,” said Minister of Science and Culture Antti Kurvinen.“At its best, a high-quality living environment also promotes a sense of community. To me, this is crucial in our post-COVID-19 reconstruction activities. People need places and spaces where they can meet up,” Kurvinen said.The principles in the Davos Declaration tie in with several objectives of the Programme of Prime Minister Sanna Marin’s Government, such as advocating higher-quality construction, supporting sustainable urban development, amending the Land Use and Building Act, implementing the Architectural Policy Programme and formulating a cultural heritage strategy.The declaration was adopted at the informal meeting of the Ministers of Culture in connection with the World Economic Forum in 2018, in which Finland was not present. The declaration is a political one, which means it is not a legally binding Treaty.
NordenBladet — In future, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs will update its travel advice for each country individually. In our advice, we will continue to take into account the recommendations with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic, issued by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, and the general security situation in the country in question.As a rule, the Foreign Ministry advises that travellers should exercise special caution when travelling not only in the EU and the Schengen area but also in countries outside the region.The Ministry’s travel advice in respect of certain countries is to avoid non-essential travel, to avoid all travel or, due to the general security situation, to leave the country immediately.The COVID-19 pandemic remains a major global risk to travel safety, and the situation may deteriorate abruptly and unpredictably in any country or region. Travellers may find that access to healthcare is limited or face quarantine orders or restrictions on being outdoors.Country-specific travel advice
NordenBladet — With residential construction reaching record levels, there is a risk of overheating in the housing market, according to the RAKSU construction trends group’s estimate.With the economy growing faster than expected in the first half of this year, the construction sector has also perked up substantially during the spring. Low interest rates and consumer confidence in the economy further strengthen the positive economic trend in construction. In addition, the level of activity among professional property investors continues to be high. New construction is growing at an unprecedented rate, and this trend is expected to continue next year. According to the RAKSU construction trends group’s estimate, there is a risk of overheating in the housing markets. In its report published on 15 September, the group recommends that the historically high state subsidies for housing production should now be adjusted to better match the current economic situation. The sharp rise in demand has driven construction costs and prices up, and created a shortage of several products. It has become increasingly difficult to receive bids from contractors. Construction labour costs have increased, and the shortage of skilled labour has become the sector’s biggest problem. Construction activity to peak around the turn of the yearThe total construction output in 2021 will remain at the 2020 level, or show a maximum increase of two to three per cent. Construction activity will peak in the second half of 2021 and the first half of 2022.While housing construction will slow down from the current levels in 2022, commercial construction is expected to accelerate, with the most significant growth expected in 2022. According to the RAKSU construction trends group’s forecast, construction output will grow by 2–4 per cent in 2022. The number of people employed in the construction sector is estimated to increase slightly in the second half of this year, with more significant growth expected next year.A growth spurt in renovation, a gradual slowdown in infrastructure constructionAlthough there was an increase in building renovation last year despite the coronavirus pandemic, it was clearly smaller than in previous years. According to the RAKSU construction trends group’s forecast, renovation will pick up pace in the next few years. Exceptional growth in civil engineering investment was seen in 2020, driven by public investment. Further growth will be seen in civil engineering activity this year while in 2022 activity is expected to contract slightly.
NordenBladet —Iceland has launched the world’s largest plant that turns carbon dioxide captured from air into rock. In a joint effort between Iceland’s Carbfix and Switzerland’s Climeworks, the plant is set to suck 4,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide out of the air every year once operating at total capacity.
The plant uses fans to draw air into a collector, which is then collected by filtered material. Once the material is filled with carbon dioxide, the collector is closed and the temperature is raised to release the carbon dioxide from the material. From there, the carbon dioxide is mixed with water and then injected into nearby basalt rock at around a depth of 1000 meters, where it is then mineralized.
The plant, named Orca after the Icelandic word “orka,” meaning “energy”, comprises four units, each made up of two metal boxes that resemble shipping containers.
Orca is among the first initiatives to capture and store carbon as an important tool to help fight climate change. Bloomberg reported that the cost is between US$10m and US$15m to build. It is estimated that Orca will capture 4000 tons of CO2 per year, making it the world’s biggest climate-positive facility to date.
NordenBladet — VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has studied how new apartments have changed in 15 years. Now the buildings are safer, healthier and more energy-efficient. Growing focus on small apartments has responded to the demand, but due to the smaller floor area homes have become more difficult to adapt to different needs.A study conducted by VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland examines the changes in housing production between 2005 and 2020. Besides efficient land use, technical improvements and smaller average size of apartments, the characteristic changes in housing production include space savings and lower energy consumption. The production has successfully responded to the growing demand through effective zoning and housing policy, but this development has also led to a less diverse building stock.With the growing numbers of small apartments, more research is needed e.g. on how long-term residents feel about living among frequently changing neighbours. The predominance of small apartments in a certain area should also be taken into account when studying the segregation of residential areas.Healthier, safer and more energy-efficient apartmentsGuidance by the authorities and product development have improved the health and safety aspects and energy efficiency of apartments. The change can be seen e.g. in better indoor air quality and sound insulation and in moisture control during the construction processes. Property-specific waste management has also advanced as the sorting of biowaste and glass and metal waste has become increasingly common, but small minimalist kitchens may not be easy to adapt to the needs of materials recycling.More efficient heating and heat recovery have reduced the energy consumption of apartments. Despite the higher price of electricity, the residents pay less for energy because of the lower heating costs.The building of single-room apartments has multipliedIn the past 15 years 301,500 apartments in blocks of flats and 54,000 in row houses have been built in Finland. The building of blocks of flats grew very strongly towards the end of the 2010s. Both the number of apartments per building and the number of floors have increased. The distribution of the types of apartments changed quite dramatically in 15 years: the number of single-room apartments in block of flats built at the end of the period was six times their number in the beginning of the period. The production of small apartments has been investor-driven: besides rental apartments, more than half of the single room apartments in housing companies have been sold to investors.In recent years large numbers of single-room apartments with a “student flat concept” have been built in blocks of flats with a deep frame. These are characterised by similar floor plans, scarce opportunities to vary the furnishing solutions, and windows that open in just one direction. The darkness of the inner part of the frame is partly compensated for by the larger window area.Former two-room (plus kitchen) apartment is today’s three-room apartmentChanges have also taken place in how the space has been designed. Now the floor area of a former two-room (plus kitchen) apartment has been divided into an apartment with three habitable rooms, one of them with an open kitchen. The habitability and functionality of the apartments and how well they are equipped are about the same, but especially in small apartments small bedrooms mean less life cycle flexibility. In this context this refers to how easily the bedrooms can be adapted to the residents’ needs in different stages of their life cycle. A flexible bedroom accommodates not just one bed but also a crib for a baby or a desk, and there is enough room to move about with assistive devices.Combining the kitchen and living room has become increasingly common in both blocks of flats and row houses. Now hardly any separate kitchens are being built, except in large rental apartments in blocks of flats, which has made kitchens somewhat darker and more difficult to ventilate. In addition to separate kitchens, there are also no saunas in small apartments, and since 2010 much fewer shared saunas have been built in residential buildings. Some of the storage spaces have moved from basements and attics to the landings. VTT’s study provides information for discussion and decisions“The study gives us comprehensive information on the trends and identifies issues where further study is needed. The housing barometer to be launched next year will tell us about the residents’ experiences and will provide us with an even more holistic view of the development needs related to the quality of housing,” Minister of the Environment Krista Mikkonen says.The study by VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland produces information on the trends in the quality of housing production in support of discussion and developing guidance in the sector. The aim was to find and analyse the causes for the changes and examine the impacts of the changes on the functionality, safety, healthiness, environmental properties and attractiveness of residential buildings and apartments. The study also covered the interdependencies between the quality, costs and prices of apartments. The previous study on the trends in the quality of housing production covered the years 1990 to 2005 and it was published in 2008.
At today’s sitting, the Riigikogu passed an Act that provides as unfair trading practices transactions and activities that are connected to payment periods, supply, and sale conditions, and that are prohibited between buyers and sellers in the agricultural products and food supply chain.
In the Act on the Prevention of Unfair Trading Practices in the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain (377 SE), initiated by the Government, sixteen unfair trading practices have been listed, nine of which are prohibited in any case. For example, the buyer must not unilaterally change the terms of a supply agreement, cancel orders at such short notice that a supplier cannot reasonably be expected to find an alternative means of commercialising or using the products, threaten to carry out acts of commercial retaliation against the supplier, etc.
The remaining seven unfair trading practices are prohibited unless they have been previously agreed in clear and unambiguous terms. For example, if the supply contract includes no written agreement on covering the cost of discount of an agricultural product or food, demanding compensation for such costs from the seller is considered an unfair trade practice. Such transactions do not give rise to any legal consequences and are void from their inception.
Supervision over trade practices will fall in the remit of the Competition Authority. The Competition Authority will also have to publish a relevant report and, by 15 March every year, submit to the European Commission an overview on the application of the requirements of the Act and on the ensurance of compliance therewith.
Liability is also provided for infringement of the prohibition on unfair trading practices. A fine of up to EUR 1,200 or detention is provided for natural persons and a fine of up to EUR 400,000 for legal persons.
The aim of the Act is to protect suppliers of agricultural and food products against unfair trading practices by buyers. The Act transposes the Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on unfair trading practices in business-to-business relationships in the agricultural and food supply chain.
During the debate, Ivari Padar (Social Democratic Party) and Aivar Kokk (Isamaa) took the floor.
90 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the passing of the Act and one was against.
A Bill passed the second reading
Under the Bill on Amendments to the Restrictions on Acquisition of Immovables Act (365 SE), initiated by the Government, state foundations established to support enterprise in rural areas will be included in the list of persons connected with the state in respect of whom the restrictions on the acquisition of agricultural land and forest land are not applied. As a result of the amendment, such foundations will no longer need to apply for authorisation from the municipal council before buying land. The aim is to reduce bureaucracy, in order to better support agricultural producers and rural businesses who are facing difficulties due to the crisis.
Under the Bill, citizens of the United Kingdom and legal persons whose seat is in the United Kingdom will continue to be exempt from the application of the restrictions arising from national defence reasons in the event of acquisition of immovables.
During the debate, Eduard Odinets (Social Democratic Party), Mihhail Stalnuhhin (Centre Party) and Riho Breivel (Estonian Conservative People’s Party) took the floor.
The Social Democratic Party Faction moved to suspend the second reading of the Bill. Nine members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the motion and 70 voted against. Thus, the motion was not supported and the second reading of the Bill was concluded.
A draft Resolution passed the first reading
The Draft Resolution of the Riigikogu “Appointment of a Member to the Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group Monitoring the Activities of the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation” (405 OE), submitted by the Legal Affairs Committee, provides for the appointment of Urve Tiidus as a member of the Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group monitoring the activities of the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation.
By its earlier Resolution, the Riigikogu appointed Uno Kaskpeit and Kalle Laanet as members of the scrutiny group. In connection with the suspension of the mandate of Member of the Riigikogu Kalle Laanet due to his appointment as a member of the Government, the Legal Affairs Committee made a proposal to appoint Member of the Riigikogu Urve Tiidus as a member of the scrutiny group to replace Kalle Laanet.
Based on the relevant Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council, the scrutiny of Europol’s activities is carried out by the European Parliament together with national parliaments. This constitutes a specialised Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group (JPSG) established together by the EU national parliaments and the competent committee of the European Parliament. The main task of the JPSG is to politically monitor Europol’s activities in fulfilling its mission, including as regards the impact of those activities on the fundamental rights and freedoms of natural persons.
A Bill was dropped from the proceedings
The Bill on Amendments to the Penal Code (373 SE), initiated by the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, was intended to establish three-to-twelve-year imprisonment for natural persons, and a pecuniary punishment or compulsory dissolution for legal persons, as a punishment for forced vaccination.
During the debate, Tiiu Aro (Reform Party), Viktor Vassiljev (Centre Party), Mihhail Lotman (Isamaa) and Mart Helme (Estonian Conservative People’s Party) took the floor.
The lead committee moved to reject the Bill at the first reading. 51 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the motion and 18 voted against. Thus, the motion was supported and the Bill was dropped from the legislative proceedings.
The first reading of a draft Resolution was adjourned due to the end of the sitting
The Draft Resolution of the Riigikogu “Formation of the Riigikogu Committee of Investigation to Ascertain the Legality and Proportionality of the Police Operation in the City Centre of Tallinn in April 2021” (379 OE), submitted by the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction, provides for the formation of a Riigikogu committee of investigation to ascertain the legality and proportionality of the conduct of the Police and Border Guard Board and other power structures in order to preclude arbitrary and unlawful restriction of constitutional civil liberties.
Due to the end of the working hours of the sitting, the following was postponed to tomorrow’s sitting
The first reading of the Bill on Amendments to the Status of Members of the Riigikogu Act (396 SE), initiated by the Social Democratic Party Faction and Member of the Riigikogu Raimond Kaljulaid.
NordenBladet — In future, COVID-19 testing will primarily focus on unvaccinated people who have been exposed to the virus and are experiencing symptoms and on vaccinated people who still continue to be at risk of serious illness from COVID-19. This is stated in the national strategy for COVID-19 testing and tracing updated by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.Maintaining the current testing and tracing capacity places a considerable burden on healthcare and may regionally lead to a reduced availability of other services. High vaccination coverage reduces especially the number of serious COVID-19 cases. Because of this, it is now possible to reduce the testing and tracing capacity in a controlled manner in order to safeguard other functions.It is, however, necessary to maintain the preparedness to increase the capacity again if necessary. In addition, it is essential for Finland to continue to be able to detect COVID-19 clusters quickly, trace chains of infection, curb the spread of infections and identify possible new virus variants that give cause for concern.People should be able to access a test within 24 hoursTo ensure equal treatment, all people who are experiencing symptoms indicative of COVID-19 or who are suspected to have COVID-19 must, regardless of their age, have access to the necessary tests on medical grounds.The aim continues to be for people to access a test within 24 hours and receive their results within 24 hours of the test. At the same time, it is necessary to ensure the availability of other medical examinations. Increased vaccination coverage reduces the disease burden and also lessens the risk of more serious cases of the disease, despite new infections. The aim of contact tracing is to identify unvaccinated people exposed to the virus as early as possible and to focus on situations where the risk of the virus spreading is greatest. If there is a considerable backlog in contact tracing, it is vital to first trace cases of exposure where there is a high risk of infection. Testing and contact tracing are one of the statutory duties of municipalities, which is supported by hospital districts and coordinated by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare. In carrying out testing and tracing, account must be taken of the regional and local situation and the decisions that the authorities make based on that in order to target testing and tracing.The national COVID-19 testing and tracing strategy is intended as a recommendation, and it complements the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health’s action plan for implementing the hybrid strategy. The measures will be updated again as the pandemic subsides.Kansallinen COVID-19 testaus- ja jäljitysstrategia, 14.9.2021 (in Finnish)
NordenBladet — Finland is coordinating the cooperation between the Nordic countries and Baltic states in the Nordic–Baltic Eight (NB8) format in 2021. The NB8 foreign ministers’ meeting will be held on 15 September at Vanajanlinna, Hämeenlinna. The NB8 countries and the Visegrád Group (V4) will have a joint meeting at foreign ministerial level on the previous day, 14 September. The V4 countries are Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic.Follow the live webcast of the press conference 14 September at 18.15 pm.
NordenBladet — Finland will strengthen the capacity to receive visa applications in Russia starting on 1 October 2021. As of that date, Finland’s Visa Application Centres in Russia will accept applications from business customers and from all applicants whose multiple-entry Schengen visa, issued by Finland for at least two years, has expired.The visa centres will continue to accept applications from all other special customer groups that have been approved so far. All customers lodging a new visa application must book an appointment.The validity of entry restrictions for Finland remains in place despite the strengthening of the capacity to receive visa customers. Decisions have not been made that would change the entry restrictions. All visa applicants must sign a document in which they undertake to ensure that they meet the conditions for entry and understand that a visa that has been issued does not guarantee entry in Finland. The Government of Finland decides on entry restrictions in line with the recommendations of the European Union. For more information on special groups allowed to cross the border, please visit the website of the Finnish border authorities. Travellers arriving in Finland must comply with the recommendations of the Finnish health authorities. Russian border authorities have restrictions on border crossings in force, too.It is estimated that over half a million Schengen visas issued by Finland in Russia have expired during the COVID-19 pandemic. By strengthening the capacity to receive visa applications in Russia, the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, like many other Schengen countries, wants to serve persons whose visa has expired and offer them an opportunity to renew their visas. This is also intended to prevent backlogs of applications caused by possible changes in border traffic restrictions. For the present, however, information of changes in the restrictions is not available.Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Finland granted the most Schengen visas in Russia and was one of the most popular destinations for Russians. In 2019, Finland issued a total of 790,000 Schengen visas in Russia. In the same year, Russians made 3.7 million visits to Finland.
The Riigikogu should carry forward, develop, but also safeguard and protect the pillars of the democratic and parliamentary state that are set out in the Constitution, President of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Jüri Ratas said in his speech to his colleagues at the Opening Sitting of the Autumn Session.
“This is the Estonia that is built on freedom, justice and law, this is the country of our fathers where the preservation of the Estonian nation, language, and culture is ensured throughout the ages. A country where the highest power is invested in the people,” Ratas emphasised. “I firmly believe that these values provide the framework and the content to our discussions and debates during the autumn session like always.”
The President of the Riigikogu thinks that the work of the Parliament during this session must be even more geared towards a dialogue with each and every person living in Estonia. “A dialogue about how our people cope, feel secure, how our nation would survive, about both mental and physical health, education, economy, this exhausting corona virus, and international situation,” Ratas explained.
In his opinion, it is possible to have a dialogue only if talking and listening are balanced. “I believe that this will help to pacify our society, improve relations, and increase our faith in our future. We need all this in our complicated world and in Estonia very much,” Ratas said.
Ratas underlined that the decisions made to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic had to remain a priority also in the Riigikogu. He said that the objective was clear – a society that is as open as possible and where the people’s health is ensured.
Ratas set out the construction and renovation of cultural facilities of national importance, the Education Sector Development Plan for the next 15 years and the next year’s state budget as the topics that would be discussed during the Autumn Session. He added that supported the debate and expanding of the Riigikogu’s decision-making competence in regard to the state budget. President of the Riigikogu also considers it important to hold a political debate on the procedure for the election of the President.
In his speech, Ratas analysed the alarming international geopolitical situation. “The latest events in Afghanistan and on the Belarus border clearly demonstrate how important it is to build a strong democratic state and to foster allied relations,” Ratas said.
The President of the Riigikogu spoke of the local government elections as well. He invited everybody to participate in the elections and to fulfil their civic duty.
President of the Republic Kersti Kaljulaid also delivered a speech at the first regular sitting of the 6th session of the 14th Riigikogu. The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, conducted by Tõnu Kaljuste, created the festive spirit at the Opening Sitting. After the festive part, the work of the Riigikogu continued with the agenda for the working week.
