Opposition parties call for Finnish PM Vanhanen resignation

Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen has been asked by opposition parties to “draw his own conclusions” from the scandal surrounding election campaign funding, and then to resign from his post. Vanhanen has come increasingly under fire in recent weeks over claims, counter claims and confusion over the source of his campaign funding, according to NewsRoom Finland.

Mr Vanhanen has so far rejected the claims arguing that it is not necessary to dissolve parliament over election funding. Vanhanen has denied allegations that he lied over campaign funding, saying that imprecise recollections and lies were not the same thing.

The issue of election funding has long plagued Finnish politics primarily due to the lack of a ceiling cap on individual donations. Vanhanen argued that he is bearing the blame for a system which has been inefficient for years, and suggested that policy reform may be the best option.

The opposition will not launch an interpellation over the scandal, as the government will release a report on election funding next week ahead of a confidence vote. The leaders of the opposition coalition parties each voiced their opinion of Vanhanen, with Annika Lapintie of the Left Alliance calling for his resignation. The chair of the Social Democrats, Taria Filatoy claimed that the opposition had lost its confidence in the PM, while Bjarne Kallis of the Christian Democrats said Vanhanen was a liar. True Finns leader Raimo Vistbacka argued that the Centre party’s leadership had driven Finnish politics into the ground.