NordenBladet — On 26 April 2021, Finland’s Minister of Transport and Communications Timo Harakka and Estonia’s Minister of Economic Affairs and Infrastructure Taavi Aas signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation between the two countries in the transport sector.
The purpose of the MoU is cooperation in the transport sector and exchange of information between the countries in order to promote large-scale transport projects, such as the Helsinki-Tallinn tunnel, Rail Baltica, Trans-European Transport Networks, and North Sea-Baltic Sea core network corridor. The MoU provides an improved environment for applying EU funding for the projects.
The states are not bound by the MoU to any individual projects. “Finland and Estonia have very ambitious rail projects underway. Our countries and capitals are located in the same EU core network corridors that will soon be expanded. In order to take advantage of the opportunities this will bring, it is wise to develop our transport systems in good cooperation and on the basis of close exchange of information. The overall objective should be that the transport systems of Finland and Estonia operate in multimodal integration, providing high-quality and sustainable journeys and transport between Northern and Central Europe.”, says the Finnish Minister of Transport and Communications Timo Harakka.
The Estonian Minister of Economic Affairs and Infrastructure Taavi Aas is glad that Finland and Estonia have agreed upon a common ground for the Tallinn-Helsinki tunnel project and Rail Baltica. “The final stop of Rail Baltica should not be Tallinn but Helsinki. Integrating the tunnel to TEN-T will serve as a new freight gateway to Europe and make our capitals a twin-city,” added Aas.The MoU states that the Helsinki-Tallinn tunnel is a unique project of the future that would require innovative actions and diversified sources of funding. Together with Rail Baltica, it would provide a quick access to Central Europe.
In February 2018, the FinEst Link project published the results of the feasibility study of the Helsinki-Tallinn railway tunnel. Based on the study, a working group of representatives of the Finnish and Estonian Ministries of Transport and Communications and the cities of Helsinki and Tallinn will assess the follow-up action required. Cooperation related to the tunnel was discussed at the joint meeting of the Governments of Finland and Estonia in May 2018.
NordenBladet — Due to the prolonged government session on spending limits, Minister Skinnari’s visit to Copenhagen will take place virtually. The scheduled meetings there will be held over remote connections.
“It is very unfortunate that the nature of the visit changes. However, it is great that parts of the planned programme can take place virtually. Closer cooperation is vital for both Finland and Denmark,” says Ville Skinnari.
NordenBladet — Minister of Employment Tuula Haatainen will visit Kemi on Tuesday 27 April. The Minister will meet Stora Enso’s management and personnel as well as representatives of the City of Kemi and the region, the ELY Centre, the TE Office and the Regional Council of Lapland.
The visit will be arranged in line with the health safety guidelines.Stora Enso announced on 20 April that it intends to shut down its Veitsiluoto paper and pulp mill in Kemi. The closure will result in a reduction of 670 jobs and will therefore have wide-ranging economic impact on the region. Immediately after the announcement, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment and the regional authorities launched measures to help the Kemi region in the sudden structural change and to support the workers who will be made redundant.
Immediate assessment of sudden structural change and measures to support re-employment of workers
Sudden structural change refers to a situation where an employer or sector of regional or national significance makes redundant a large number of employees at once, as a result of bankruptcy or extensive adjustment measures.
Various employment, economic and regional development measures that are specific to the situation aim to prevent a recession of the regional economy. These measures help create new jobs, renew old ones and promote re-employment of those made redundant as quickly as possible.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment and the regional authorities will begin to assess the situation immediately after the company’s announcement. Measures to support the re-employment and wellbeing of employees will also start right away. The regional TE Office will agree on practical arrangements for change security with the company.
The management of a sudden and continuous structural change is driven by regions. If a region is well prepared for a sudden structural change, the measures introduced by the State and the region itself to manage the situation will be more effective. The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment will assess any additional measures and funding provided by the Government.
NordenBladet — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs together with the Finnish Development NGOs Fingo and Finnish chambers of commerce held a new kind of series of live broadcasts, entitled Partners in Development, in March and April. The series comprised seven events, in which various bodies from different parts of Finland presented their contribution to development cooperation.
In Jyväskylä the topic of the discussion was education in development cooperation and education export.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs together with the Finnish Development NGOs Fingo and Finnish chambers of commerce held a new kind of series of live broadcasts, entitled Partners in Development, in March and April. The series comprised seven events, in which various bodies from different parts of Finland presented their contribution to development cooperation.
NordenBladet — At the presidential session on Friday 23 April, the President of the Republic appointed a new Ambassador to serve in London.
The President of the Republic appointed Counsellor for Foreign Affairs Jukka Siukosaari to serve as Head of Mission at Finland’s Embassy in London, starting on 1 September 2021. Siukosaari will move to London from the Office of the President of the Republic, where he has worked as Secretary General since 2018. In 2016–2018, he served as Finland’s Ambassador in Tokyo and in 2012–2016, as Finland’s Ambassador in Buenos Aires. His career in the Diplomatic Service includes postings to London, Pretoria, Rome and Dublin.
Siukosaari joined the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1995. He holds the degree of Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration.
NordenBladet — Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari will visit Copenhagen on 26–27 April. The aim of the visit is to promote bilateral commercial and economic cooperation and to discuss other topical trade policy matters. A business delegation representing the wind power sector will participate in the visit virtually.
The aim of Minister Skinnari’s visit to Copenhagen is to promote cooperation between Finland and Denmark especially in the green transition. The post-COVID-19 recovery measures offers plenty of growth and cooperation opportunities for companies in both countries as well as excellent conditions for expansion to global markets together. Other themes of discussion during the visit will include, among other things, topical trade policy questions. The Minister will be accompanied by a Team Finland business delegation of 29 representatives of the wind power sector, attending the discussions online. Denmark aims to be the first land in the world to replace wind power parks by artificial energy islands. Denmark will build two energy islands by 2030, designed to generate electricity and to enable storage and conversion of energy into hydrogen that can be further processed into fuels. Denmark’s energy island and wind power projects offer extensive opportunities for Finnish companies. The purpose of the ministerial visit and virtual export promotion visit is to advance the establishment of partnerships with Danish operators also on global markets.
“Denmark and Finland have common ambitious climate and energy objectives, which involve much potential for collaboration. Global demand for low-carbon solutions is on the increase. Finnish and Danish companies can offer sustainable and environmentally friendly solutions for both European and global markets,” Skinnari says. Minister Skinnari will have a meeting with Denmark’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Jeppe Kofod and Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities Dan Jørgensen. There will be also meetings with leaders of Danish business life and Danish companies.
NordenBladet — Business cost support is intended for companies whose turnover has decreased by more than 30% due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 22 April 2021, the Government issued a decree on the sectors that can apply for support without providing further justification. If a company does not operate in one of the sectors in the decree, it must justify the need for support and provide an account of the loss of turnover due to COVID-19.
The decree includes the sectors where turnover has fallen by at least 10% between 1 November 2020 and 28 February 2021, compared with the corresponding period in 2019–2020. The decrease in companies’ turnover will also be calculated based on these reference periods.
The State Treasury will accept applications for the third round of business cost support from Tuesday 27 April 2021. The deadline for applications is 23 June 2021.
New companies eligible for business cost support if they operate in the sectors of the decree
The third application round for business cost support covers 180 sectors, whereas 220 were listed in the second round. The sectors now include travel agencies and tour operators, organisers of trade fairs and congresses, hotels and other accommodation services, restaurants, and cultural and entertainment businesses.
However, the State Treasury may also grant business cost support to companies in other sectors on a discretionary basis if the company’s turnover has decreased by more than 30% during the support period. The grounds for discretionary aid will be specified in the State Treasury’s application instructions in order to help companies to assess and explain in their application why their turnover has decreased.
New companies are eligible for business cost support if they operate in the sectors defined in the decree. Companies established on or after 1 January 2020 are considered new companies. They may be granted support based on changes in the average turnover of the sector. However, new companies are not be eligible for discretionary aid because they cannot demonstrate a change in the company’s turnover.
Listing of sectors to help allocate aid to companies affected by the pandemic
The listing of eligible sectors will help to better take into account other reasons for a decrease in a company’s business. These may include seasonal fluctuations or declines in turnover for reasons other than COVID-19.
The sectors listed in the decree were determined based on VAT data from the Tax Administration. Cost support cannot be granted to businesses in primary agricultural production, fisheries and aquaculture, as these sectors are subject to separate State aid rules that are the responsibility of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. Business cost support also covers foundations and associations engaged in business activities.
The State has earmarked a total of EUR 356 million for the third application round of business cost support. Business cost support is compensation for the company’s inflexible costs, but it does not compensate for a fall in turnover. The objective of the support is to help companies cope with the difficult economic situation caused by the coronavirus.
NordenBladet — Today, on 22 April 2021, the Government has appointed Master of Science in Agriculture and Forestry Minna-Mari Kaila to the post of Director General of the Food Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry for the period from 1 May 2021 to 30 April 2026.
Kaila has served as Director General of the Food Department for a fixed term since 2017. A total of five persons applied for the post.Before coming to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Kaila worked at the Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners MTK as Director of Agriculture in 2013–2016 and as Director of Rural Entrepreneurship in 2011–2013.
The Director General is responsible for the management and supervision of the Food Department, strategic leadership, and impact and performance in the management of the Department’s tasks.
NordenBladet — The implementation programme of the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) will receive an additional resettlement appropriation of EUR 5.7 million, which the European Commission will pay to Finland. The funding will be allocated to measures related to the reception and integration of quota refugees who arrived in Finland in 2020. During the previous monitoring period from October 2019 to October 2020, 572 quota refugees arrived in Finland.
In addition, the core funding of the Fund will be reallocated between the objectives of the Fund in order to make full use of the funding in the call for proposals that starts on 3 May 2021. The AMIF call for proposals, which starts on 3 May 2021, will include the resettlement appropriation that is to be added to the implementation programme. In addition, approximately EUR 1 million of unspent funds that were already previously included in the programme will be open for application. This means that the resettlement appropriation that is open for application will amount to around EUR 6.7 million. Besides the inclusion of the additional appropriation, the programme, which is to be amended, will define the distribution of the funding among the objective.
The change in the distribution of the Fund’s core funding between the different objectives of the national programme of the Fund and the implementation programme specifying the national programme will be done to make full use of the funding in the call for proposals to be launched in May. Funding will be allocated especially to the national objective of integration, and as part of this a thematic call for proposals that concern how to promote receptiveness in society will be launched in May. Regarding the thematic call, one of the purposes of the projects to be supported is to make the role of society visible in the integration of third-country nationals into Finland and to identify factors affecting it.
An amendment to the Fund’s implementation programme is needed to include the resettlement appropriation in the programme and to reallocate funding between the Fund’s specific and national objectives. The amendment to the implementation programme was adopted at the government plenary session on 22 April 2021.
The AMIF monitoring committee discussed the amendments to the programme in its written procedure from 12 to 23 March 2021. The monitoring committee supported the proposed reallocations of funding.
NordenBladet — The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of restaurants and other food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The amendment to the decree will enter into force on 23 April at 00.00.
On 22 April, the Government reviewed the set of restrictions concerning food and beverage service businesses on the basis of the regional epidemiological situation. The restrictions were now reviewed for the first time since the Government issued its previous decree on the restrictions on 19 April. The restrictions are reviewed weekly. They have been more lenient for the areas where the epidemic is at a stable level than for the areas worst affected by the epidemic.
The amendment to the decree will ease the restrictions in the region of Central Finland and the Hospital District of South Savo, allowing these areas to move down to restrictions imposed on areas at a stable level. In the regions of Satakunta, Kanta-Häme and Ostrobothnia, the restrictions on the opening and licensing hours of food and beverage service businesses will be eased. This is done by adding a new third tier, an intermediate tier, to the current two-tier restrictions system. The restrictions in place in other areas will remain unchanged.
For the restrictions to be eased, it is necessary that the epidemiological situation improves. The aim is to gradually ease the restrictions on food and beverage service businesses in a manner that ensures health security.
Restrictions on food and beverage service businesses in Åland, South Ostrobothnia, Kainuu, Central Ostrobothnia, North Ostrobothnia, Lapland, North Savo, North Karelia, Central Finland and the Hospital District of South Savo from 23 April 2021Restaurants that primarily serve alcoholic beverages may have in use half the normal number of customer seats in indoor premises. In other restaurants, 75 per cent of customer seats may be in use in indoor premises. Restaurants may serve alcoholic beverages until 22.00 and be open to customers between 5.00 and 23.00.In these regions, restaurants must also instruct customers to stay seated in indoor premises. This means that dancing and karaoke, for example, are prohibited in indoor premises.
In outdoor terraces, each customer must have a seat, and everyone must take care of safe distances. The customer seating restrictions and ‘dance ban’ do not apply to outdoor terraces. Restrictions on food and beverage service businesses in Kanta-Häme, Satakunta and Ostrobothnia from 23 April
Restaurants that primarily serve alcoholic beverages may have in use one third of the normal number of customer seats in indoor premises. Other restaurants will be allowed to seat half of their normal number of customers inside their establishments.Restaurants that primarily serve alcoholic beverages may serve alcohol until 18.00 and be open to customers between 5.00 and 19.00. Other restaurants may serve alcohol until 19.00 and be open to customers between 5.00 and 20.00.In outdoor terraces, each customer must have a seat, and everyone must take care of safe distances. The customer seating restrictions and ‘dance ban’ do not apply to outdoor terraces.
Restrictions on food and beverage service businesses in Uusimaa, Southwest Finland, Pirkanmaa, Päijät-Häme, Kymenlaakso, South Karelia and the Hospital District of East Savo from 23 April
Restaurants that primarily serve alcoholic beverages may have in use one third of the normal number of seats in indoor premises. Other restaurants will be allowed to seat half of their normal number of customers inside their establishments.
They may serve alcoholic beverages between 7.00 and 17.00. Restaurants that primarily serve alcoholic beverages may be open between 5.00 and 18.00. Other restaurants may be open to customers between 5.00 and 19.00.The restaurants located in these regions must also instruct customers to stay seated in indoor premises. This means that dancing and karaoke, for example, are prohibited.
In outdoor terraces, each customer must have a seat, and everyone must take care of safe distances. The above-mentioned customer seating restrictions and ‘dance ban’ do not apply to outdoor terraces.
Exceptions to restrictions remain unchanged
The restrictions laid down in the decree do not apply to the activities of staff restaurants or to takeaway sales of food to customers.The restrictions on opening hours do not apply to food and beverage service businesses on vessels and aircraft that operate between Finland and other countries or abroad or to food and beverage service businesses that operate at distribution stations for liquid fuels.
Compensation to food and beverage service businesses
Restaurants and other companies that have been shut down by law or order of an authority may be entitled to closure compensation. This new form of compensation applies to small and micro-sized enterprises that employ a maximum of 49 employees. Applications for closure compensation will be accepted from 12 May 2021. Companies can apply for the compensation at the State Treasury.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment is currently preparing a proposal to compensate large companies for the closure, but it will require the approval of the European Commission. Closure compensation and compensation for any subsequent restrictions on restaurants will be prepared as part of the fourth application round for business cost support.
In Jyväskylä the topic of the discussion was education in development cooperation and education export.