Jyrki Katainen

Jyrki Katainen

Jyrki Tapani Katainen is the Prime Minister of Finland and chairman of the country's largest party, the National Coalition Party.-Career:...

's cabinet (— ) is the 72nd cabinet of Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

, formed as a result of the 2011 post-parliamentary election

Finnish parliamentary election, 2011

An election to the Eduskunta was held on 17 April 2011 after the termination of the previous parliamentary term. Advance voting, which included voting by Finnish expatriates, was held between 6 and 12 April with a turnout of 31.2%....

 negotiations between the Finnish parliamentary parties. Led by Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Finland

The Prime Minister is the Head of Government of Finland. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President, who is the Head of State. The current Prime Minister is Jyrki Katainen of the National Coalition Party.-Overview:...

 Jyrki Katainen of the National Coalition Party (NCP), 12 ministers of the 19-minister government represent the NCP and the Social Democratic Party

Social Democratic Party of Finland

The Social Democratic Party of Finland is one of the three major political parties in Finland, along with the Centre Party and the National Coalition Party. Jutta Urpilainen is the current SDP leader. The party has been in the Finnish government cabinet for long periods and has set many...

 (SDP), while the Left Alliance

Left Alliance (Finland)

The Left Alliance is a left-wing political party in Finland. It was founded on the basis of the Finnish People's Democratic League and the Communist Party of Finland in 1990....

, the Green League

Green League

The Green League is a centrist green liberal political party in Finland. It has ten seats in the Finnish Parliament and two in the European Parliament. The current chairperson is Ville Niinistö....

, the Swedish People's Party (SPP) and the Christian Democrats

Christian Democrats (Finland)

The Christian Democrats is a Christian democratic political party in Finland. Formerly known as the Finnish Christian League , the Christian Democrats have six seats in the Finnish Parliament and one in the European Parliament.The party was founded in 1958, chiefly from the Christian faction of...

 share seven minister portfolios. On June 22, the Parliament confirmed Katainen's election as the Prime Minister and President

President of Finland

The President of the Republic of Finland is the nation's head of state. Under the Finnish constitution, executive power is vested in the President and the government, with the President possessing extensive powers. The President is elected directly by the people of Finland for a term of six years....

 Tarja Halonen

Tarja Halonen

Tarja Kaarina Halonen is the incumbent President of Finland. The first female to hold the office, Halonen had previously been a member of the parliament from 1979 to 2000 when she resigned after her election to the presidency...

 inaugurated the government. Two Left Alliance MPs voted against Katainen, for which they were formally reprimanded by the Left Alliance's parliamentary group (and later expelled from the group).

Portfolios

The NCP has six ministers in the Cabinet as does the SDP. The Left Alliance, the Green League and the SPP have two ministers each and the Christian Democrats has one. The NCP, SDP, Left Alliance, SPP and Christian Democrats announced their propositions for ministerial portfolios during the weekend of June 17—19 and the Green League announced its ministers designate on June 20.

The division of offices agreed upon between the government parties is as follows:

• National Coalition Party: Prime Minister
  Prime Minister of Finland
  The Prime Minister is the Head of Government of Finland. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President, who is the Head of State. The current Prime Minister is Jyrki Katainen of the National Coalition Party.-Overview:...
  
  , Minister for Social Affairs and Health, Minister of Economic Affairs, Minister of Public Administration and Local Government, Minister for Foreign Trade and Europe, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry
• Social Democratic Party: Minister of Finance
  Minister of Finance (Finland)
  The Minister of Finance of Finland handles the Finance of Finland and all other matters covered by the Ministry of Finance...
  
  , Minister for Foreign Affairs, Minister for Health and Social Services, Minister for Education, Minister of Labour, Minister for Housing and Communications
• Left Alliance: Minister of Transport, Minister of Culture and Sports
• Green League: Minister of the Environment, Minister for Development
• Swedish People's Party: Minister of Justice
  Minister of Justice (Finland)
  -List of Ministers of Justice:...
  
  , Minister of Defence
  Minister of Defence (Finland)
  The Minister of Defence is a member of the Finnish Council of State. As the head of the Ministry of Defence, the minister is responsible for the administration of national defence. The ministry is headquartered in Helsinki...
  
  
• Christian Democrats: Minister of the Interior
  Minister of the Interior (Finland)
  -List of Ministers of the Interior:...
  
  

Ministry	Office	Incumbent	Image	Party	in office since
Prime Minister's Office	Prime Minister Prime Minister of Finland The Prime Minister is the Head of Government of Finland. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President, who is the Head of State. The current Prime Minister is Jyrki Katainen of the National Coalition Party.-Overview:...	Jyrki Katainen Jyrki Katainen Jyrki Tapani Katainen is the Prime Minister of Finland and chairman of the country's largest party, the National Coalition Party.-Career:...		National Coalition Party	June 22, 2011
Ministry of Finance	Minister of Finance Minister of Finance (Finland) The Minister of Finance of Finland handles the Finance of Finland and all other matters covered by the Ministry of Finance...  and Deputy Prime Minister	Jutta Urpilainen Jutta Urpilainen Jutta Pauliina Urpilainen is the current Minister of Finance of Finland and the Chairperson of the Social Democratic Party of Finland . She was elected in June 2008 as the first female chairperson of the SDP....		Social Democratic Party	June 22, 2011
	Minister of Public Administration and Local Government	Henna Virkkunen		National Coalition Party	June 22, 2011
Ministry for Foreign Affairs Ministry for Foreign Affairs (Finland) The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is a ministry in the Finnish Government and is responsible for preparing and implementing the government's foreign policy.-Organisation:...	Minister for Foreign Affairs	Erkki Tuomioja Erkki Tuomioja Erkki Sakari Tuomioja is the Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs. He is currently a member of the Finnish Parliament.Tuomioja is a member of the Social Democratic Party of Finland, although his political views are thought to be more to the left than the party line. He is also a member of ATTAC...		Social Democratic Party	June 22, 2011
	Minister for European Affairs and Foreign Trade	Alexander Stubb Alexander Stubb Cai-Göran Alexander Stubb is a Finnish politician and Minister for Foreign Affairs from 4 April 2008 to 22 June 2011...		National Coalition Party	June 22, 2011
	Minister for International Development and ownership steering issues at the Prime Minister’s Office	Heidi Hautala Heidi Hautala -External links:* * *...  x		Green League Green League The Green League is a centrist green liberal political party in Finland. It has ten seats in the Finnish Parliament and two in the European Parliament. The current chairperson is Ville Niinistö....	June 22, 2011
Ministry of Justice Ministry of Justice (Finland) The Ministry of Justice is one of the 12 ministries in the Finnish Government. Headed by the Minister of Justice, it is responsible for "maintaining and developing order and legal safeguards and overseeing the structures of democracy and the fundamental rights of citizens" in Finland...	Minister of Justice Minister of Justice (Finland) -List of Ministers of Justice:...	Anna-Maja Henriksson Anna-Maja Henriksson Anna-Maja Henriksson is a Swedish-speaking Finnish politician. She is Finland's Minister of Justice in Jyrki Katainen's cabinet. She has been a member of the Parliament of Finland since 2007 and a vice-chairperson of the Swedish People's Party of Finland since 2010.-References:...		Swedish People's Party	June 22, 2011
Ministry of the Interior	Minister of the Interior	Päivi Räsänen Päivi Räsänen Päivi Maria Räsänen, née Kuvaja , is a Finnish politician. The chairwoman of the Christian Democrats since 2004, she is the current Minister of the Interior of Finland....		Christian Democrats Christian Democrats (Finland) The Christian Democrats is a Christian democratic political party in Finland. Formerly known as the Finnish Christian League , the Christian Democrats have six seats in the Finnish Parliament and one in the European Parliament.The party was founded in 1958, chiefly from the Christian faction of...	June 22, 2011
Ministry of Defence	Minister of Defence Minister of Defence (Finland) The Minister of Defence is a member of the Finnish Council of State. As the head of the Ministry of Defence, the minister is responsible for the administration of national defence. The ministry is headquartered in Helsinki...	Stefan Wallin Stefan Wallin Stefan Erik Wallin is a Swedish-speaking Finnish politician. He is currently Finland's Minister of Defence in Jyrki Katainen's cabinet....		Swedish People's Party	June 22, 2011
Ministry of Education and Culture	Minister of Education and Science	Jukka Gustafsson		Social Democratic Party	June 22, 2011
	Minister of Culture and Sport	Paavo Arhinmäki Paavo Arhinmäki Paavo Erkki Arhinmäki is a Finnish politician, the incumbent Minister for Culture and Sport and a member of the Finnish Parliament, representing the Left Alliance, whose leader he has been since June 2009. He was first elected to the Finnish Parliament in the 2007 election and reelected in 2011...		Left Alliance Left Alliance (Finland) The Left Alliance is a left-wing political party in Finland. It was founded on the basis of the Finnish People's Democratic League and the Communist Party of Finland in 1990....	June 22, 2011
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry	Minister of Agriculture and Forestry	Jari Koskinen Jari Koskinen Jari Antero Koskinen is a Finnish politician and the Minister for Agriculture and Forestry of Finland, as well as a former representative of the National Coalition Party in the Parliament of Finland. He also worked as a Minister for Agriculture and Forestry in Paavo Lipponen's second...  x		National Coalition Party	June 22, 2011
Ministry of Transport and Communications Ministry of Transport and Communications (Finland) The Ministry of Transport and Communications is a government ministry of Finland. Its head office is in Helsinki.-External links:* * *...	Minister of Transport	Merja Kyllönen		Left Alliance Left Alliance (Finland) The Left Alliance is a left-wing political party in Finland. It was founded on the basis of the Finnish People's Democratic League and the Communist Party of Finland in 1990....	June 22, 2011
Ministry of Employment and the Economy	Minister of Economic Affairs	Jyri Häkämies Jyri Häkämies Jyri Jukka Häkämies is the current Finnish Minister of Economic Affairs and a representative of the National Coalition Party, and the minister responsible for supervision of government enterprises with the exception of Patria, which is supervised by Jan Vapaavuori...		National Coalition Party	June 22, 2011
	Minister of Labour	Lauri Ihalainen		Social Democratic Party	June 22, 2011
Ministry of Social Affairs and Health	Minister of Social Affairs and Health	Paula Risikko Paula Risikko Paula Risikko currently holds a position as a Minister of Health and Social Services in the Finnish Council of State. She is from Seinäjoki and is a member of National Coalition Party....		National Coalition Party	June 22, 2011
	Minister of Health and Social Services	Maria Guzenina-Richardson		Social Democratic Party	June 22, 2011
Ministry of the Environment	Minister of the Environment	Ville Niinistö Ville Niinistö Ville Matti Niinistö is a Finnish politician. He is a member of the parliament, current chairperson of the Green League, incumbent Minister of the Environment and a member of the city council of Turku. Niinistö has a master's degree in political science from the University of Turku...		Green League Green League The Green League is a centrist green liberal political party in Finland. It has ten seats in the Finnish Parliament and two in the European Parliament. The current chairperson is Ville Niinistö....	June 22, 2011
	Minister of Housing and Communications	Krista Kiuru		Social Democratic Party Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by a large number of political parties in various countries around the world...	June 22, 2011

× Note: not an MP — Prior to being appointed, Hautala was an MEP

Member of the European Parliament

A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...

 and Koskinen was a board member of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

Founded in 1991, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development uses the tools of investment to help build market economies and democracies in 30 countries from central Europe to central Asia. Its mission was to support the formerly communist countries in the process of establishing their...

.

Government platform

On June 17, the new government announced its platform for the upcoming years of 2011—2015. Upon its announcement, Helsingin Sanomat

Helsingin Sanomat

Helsingin Sanomat is the largest subscription newspaper in Finland and the Nordic countries, owned by Sanoma. Except after certain holidays, it is published daily. In 2008, its daily circulation was 412,421 on weekdays and 468,505 on Sundays...

highlighted its main points as follows:

Budget cuts and tax increases

• the state assets will increase by € 2.5 billion, one half comes from increase in taxation and the other from budget cuts
• the main items of expenditure subject to budget cuts are equalization payments, military spending
  Finnish Defence Forces
  The Finnish Defence Forces are responsible for the defence of Finland. It is a cadre army of 15,000, of which 8,900 are professional soldiers , extended with conscripts and reservists such that the standard readiness strength is 34,700 people in uniform...
  
   and development aid
  Development aid
  Development aid or development cooperation is aid given by governments and other agencies to support the economic, environmental, social and political development of developing countries.It is distinguished...
  
  
• budget cuts:

• equalization payments from the state to municipalities: –€ 600 million
• military spending: –€ 200 million
• level of development aid will be frozen in 2013 and 2014
• industrial subsidies: –€ 100 million
• compensations for costs of medications included in the medical insurance: –€ 100 million
  • increases in taxation:
• Capital gain tax
  Capital gain
  A capital gain is a profit that results from investments into a capital asset, such as stocks, bonds or real estate, which exceeds the purchase price. It is the difference between a higher selling price and a lower purchase price, resulting in a financial gain for the investor...
  
   (e.g. on sales profits, rent income, dividends) will go up to 30 %; the tax will be 32 % on the part exceeding € 50,000 per year (as opposed to the previous flat tax
  Flat tax
  A flat tax is a tax system with a constant marginal tax rate. Typically the term flat tax is applied in the context of an individual or corporate income that will be taxed at one marginal rate...
  
   on all capital income)
• gasoline tax will increase by 10 %
• taxes on car ownership, alcohol, tobacco, sweets and soft drinks will increase
• tax-deductibility
  Tax deduction
  Income tax systems generally allow a tax deduction, i.e., a reduction of the income subject to tax, for various items, especially expenses incurred to produce income. Often these deductions are subject to limitations or conditions...
  
   on interest payments of mortgages will decrease gradually from 100 % down to 75 % by the end of the parliamentary term
• tax-deductibility on purchased household services (e.g. cleaning) will be reduced to € 2,000 per year
• a new tax of 9 % will be imposed on subscriptions to newspapers and journals (as opposed to their previous tax-freedom)

Social benefits

• Basic Allowance (an optional form of Unemployment Allowance, the other being Earnings-Related Allowance) and the Labour Market Subsidy will increase by € 100 per month
• General Housing Allowance: the rent limit, rendering an allowance-seeker ineligible, will increase
• Basic part of the Subsistence Benefit will increase by 6 %
• "special support" will be allocated for single parents
• Study Grant will follow the Finnish cost-of-living index
  Cost-of-living index
  Cost of living is the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living. Changes in the cost of living over time are often operationalized in a cost of living index. Cost of living calculations are also used to compare the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living in different geographic areas...
  
   since the autumn of 2014

Municipality reform

• the new government will implement "large-scale, structural reforms" on municipalities, by forming municipalities accordingly to "the sphere where people come to work to the relevant municipality" and the "vitality" of the municipality; the government will "specify the criteria of the reform" by late 2011

Work careers

• while regarding "the extension of work careers inevitable for maintaining a sustainable worker—pensioner ratio and balancing state finances", the new government will "prepare work pension policies in cooperation with the key labour market organizations"
• "special concerns" regard:
• prevention of work incapacity
• development of professional skills

European Union

• Finland will "strive for participation in key projects of the EU
  European Union
  The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
  
  " and "criticism of the EU by the citizens will be taken seriously".

Energy

• the new government "is committed not to grant permissions for new nuclear plants
  Nuclear power plant
  A nuclear power plant is a thermal power station in which the heat source is one or more nuclear reactors. As in a conventional thermal power station the heat is used to generate steam which drives a steam turbine connected to a generator which produces electricity.Nuclear power plants are usually...
  
  , therefore dismissing Fortum
  Fortum
  Fortum Oyj is a Finnish publicly listed energy company, which focuses on the Nordic and Baltic countries, Poland and the north-west of Russia. After acquisition of Russian energy company TGC-10 in year 2008, Western Siberia has become an important operating area for Fortum. The head of the company...
  
  's petition to build one"

Immigration

• the government "takes a positive stance on immigration", holding that "immigrants are a permanent and welcome part of the Finnish society"
• the government considers the assimilation of immigrants and prevention of discrimination "central" during this tenure
• the government strives for an immigration policy that "supports the build-up of a tolerant, safe and pluralistic Finland and strengthens Finland's international competitiveness"

Finnish Broadcasting Company

• the funding of the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yleisradio, YLE) "will be agreed upon during 2011"
• the government will "reform the funding" as agreed upon by the parliamentary groups in March 2010

Abortion

• the government "strives for a decrease in abortion rates"
• the new government will implement a "study on whether the week limit (20) for induced abortion should be altered"; this may "mean that the government considers making abortion laws stricter"
• the government wants "to secure the counseling of and support for women seeking for abortion"

Geriatric care

• to secure a standard level for geriatric care, "a law on geriatric care" will be introduced