Jyrki Katiainen (cons), Finland's finance minister, has cancelled his visit to Maputo in Mozambique, according to a statement on Thursday by his special adviser Juha Kirstilä.

The minister was forced to delay his visit on Wednesday due to the restless situation.

Having received confirmation that he is not to enter Mozambique during the coming days, Katainen is now to return to Finland a day earlier than scheduled, on Friday.

Katainen was scheduled to meet with the finance minister and the deputy minister for foreign affairs and cooperation of Mozambique.

The restless situation was sparked by public outrage at the rising prices of food and fuels. The situation is acute in the capital city Maputo.

The finance minister traveled to southern Africa on Sunday.

STT

Flushed with ratings success, the True Finns have listed their priorities for a future government.

TIMO SOINI, the chair of the right-wing True Finns, was not shy when listing his party's aims for the outcome of next spring's parliamentary elections. Commenting on 30 August, Soini confirmed that the True Finns wanted a place in government. And while they have a bunch of key priorities, they will not rule out an offer on the basis of a single issue.

Gathered in Porvoo's market square, Soini and his fellow True Finns MPs were evidently basking in the political sunshine: according to a Gallup poll released on 27 August by the Finnish Broadcasting Corporation (YLE), the True Finns have slightly strengthened their position as the fourth most popular party.

Jyri Häkämies, Finland's minister of defence, is to visit Örebro in Sweden on Wednesday and Thursday to discuss security matters, according to a statement by the ministry of defence on Thursday.

Häkämies is to meet Swedish Minister of Defence Sten Tolgfors to discuss current operation in Afghanistan, regional security issues and current EU CSDP matters, as well as to acquaint himself with the Swedish defence industry.

STT

Jyrki Katainen (cons), Finland's finance minister, told that he is ashamed of the level of the Russia debate in Finland, according to reports in regional daily Savon Sanomat on Wednesday.

Katainen admitted that his recent statement that the Russian economy was the same size as that of Holland was a mistake, but he regrets that the matter spiralled into a scandal, according to the paper.

STT

Pekka Haavisto MP told on Tuesday that the Greens would reduce the Finnish army's reserve from the current 350,000 to somewhere between 75,000 and 150,000 soldiers.

The generally accepted worst-case scenarios do not require so many reserves or conscription, according to Haavisto.

However, the Greens would keep the obligation to defend the nation in the Finnish constitution, this way the government could reintroduce conscription in crisis situations.

STT

The Finnish ministry of social affairs and health told on Monday that it has cleared Markku Partinen, a Finnish sleep researcher, of suspected negligence in the narcolepsy scandal.

According to the ministry, Partinen did not withhold information about the suspicions of a connection between the Pandemrix vaccine and narcolepsy.

Partinen was asked to attend talks with the ministry for neglecting to disclose information as well as publicising incorrect information about the obligation of doctors to declare information.
The matter is not to be taken further.

The narcolepsy scandal was sparked when neurologists reported suspicions of a link between an increase in child narcolepsy cases and the swine flu vaccine. Officials have since been investigating whether medical researchers should have disclosed their findings immediately.

STT

Writing in a column in provincial paper Ilkka on Tuesday, Mari Kiviniemi (centre), Finland's prime minister, urged responsibility in the municipal reform debate.

Kiviniemi expressed concern that political bargaining is overshadowing the real goals of merging certain municipalities.

Instead of political bargaining, people should primarily be told which municipalities are to be joined and how this will affect municipal services and costs, Kiviniemi argued.