Orpo Confirmed As New PM, Set To Deliver About-Turn In Gov't Policy

The Finnish Parliament has officially voted to approve centre-right National Coalition Party (NCP) chair Petteri Orpo as the new prime minister, replacing former Social Democratic Party (SDP) head Sanna Marin. Orpo now leads a four-party right-leaning gov't containing his NCP, the right-wing nationalist Finns Party (PS), the social conservative Christian Democrats (KD) and the minority interest Swedish People's Party (SFP). In policy terms the gov't is set to deliver a stark divergence from Marin's five-party left-leaning gov't that was seen as a bastion of progressive gov't in the EU.

• In the new coalition agreement, the incoming gov't argued in favour of a limited role for the European Union beyond major issues. The document stated that “Finland wants the EU to play big on big issues and small on small issues...Finland advocates for a clear division of competences between the union and the member states, which should not be expanded with a new interpretation of the treaties.”
• On EU finances, the agreement states that “The EU budget must be kept at a reasonable level, avoiding an increase in Finland’s net contribution...Finland will not commit to measures that would shape the European Union into an asymmetric income transfer union. The recovery instrument was an exceptional one-off solution that should not serve as a precedent.”