The 'calm and tranquil' stamp won the prize for best stamp in the world between 2013-2017 (Image: Lehtikuva)

A NUMBER OF FINNISH POSTAGE STAMPS have won international recognition for their design, with one (main image) being voted as the 'best in the world' for the 2013-2017 period. The annual Nexofil Awards consists of a panel representing 37 countries, tasked with awarding recognition to the best stamp designs around the globe. 

The need for primary-school teachers is expected to drop by 4,000 by 2030 in Finland, shows a new study by Perlacon. (Vesa Moilanen – Lehtikuva)

ALTHOUGH THE AGEING of the Finnish population has been the subject of widespread public discussion for quite some time, the projections remain sobering: the number of working-age people is to decrease by 70,000 and that of over 74-year-old people by 280,000 by 2030.

This is highlighted in a study conducted on commission from the Association of Finnish Municipalities by Perlacon, a Finnish consultancy specialising in municipal finance and administration.

Nokia on Tuesday said it will cut up to 180 jobs in Finland by late 2020. (Vesa Moilanen – Lehtikuva)

NOKIA on Tuesday announced it will begin consultative negotiations with its staff with a view to shedding up to 180 jobs in Finland.

The Espoo-headquartered network equipment manufacturer said the redundancies are to be made by year-end and affect all of its offices in the country, except for its fifth-generation mobile network (5G) product development staff and base station production staff in Oulu, North Ostrobothnia.

The Finnish economy will be affected by population ageing more than expected, according to Hypo. (Eija Kontio – Lehtikuva)

THE FINNISH ECONOMY will be hit by population ageing more severely than expected, warns the Mortgage Society of Finland (Hypo).

Hypo on Thursday viewed in its biannual economic review that the impact of population ageing on the national economy is larger than any policy measure introduced by the government or the possible wave of strikes ahead.

The EU runs a trade surplus with itself of EUR 307 billion – a figure that should be zero if all transactions were properly reported and recorded. Measurement errors alone cannot account for this systematic deviation. Instead, one cause seems to be massive VAT fraud, which costs EU countries EUR 30–60 billion each year. This is the result of an empirical analysis jointly conducted by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel) and the ifo Institute in Munich.

Anna Kontula (Left Alliance) says she was taken into custody in Israel on Monday and held for over 10 hours for attempting to organise a protest to draw attention to the humanitarian situation in Gaza. (Martti Kainulainen – Lehtikuva)

ANNA KONTULA (Left Alliance), a 42-year-old third-term Member of the Finnish Parliament from Tampere, was taken into custody alongside other members of an international group of human rights activists close to the Gaza Strip in Israel on Monday.

She told Helsingin Sanomat that the objective of the five-person group was to call attention to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza by crossing the barrier separating Israel and Gaza.

Compensate, a non-profit foundation headed by ex-lawmaker Antero Vartia, has set out to reduce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by using voluntary payments to purchase emission reduction units. (Markku Ulander – Lehtikuva)

MARIA OHISALO (Greens), the Minister of the Interior, has hinted at the possibility of amending the upcoming money collection act if it remains an obstacle to the operations of Compensate, a non-profit foundation headed by Antero Vartia.

The Finnish Gambling Administration, a department of the National Police Board, in June ruled that the foundation engages in unremunerated activity and therefore requires a money collection permit.

A litter of wolf pups was captured on a trail camera near Salo and Raasepori in mid-2015. (Handout – Finnish Hunters’ Association)

HANNU HOSKONEN (Centre), the chairperson of the Parliament’s Environment Committee, has pressed on with his mission to challenge the wolf population estimates of Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke).

“It is an undeniable fact that the real number of wolves is a secret protected by all means possible by Luke,” he claimed in an opinion piece to Savon Sanomat.

A koala awaits treatment for burn injuries at a makeshift field hospital on Kangaroo Island, Australia (Image: Lehtikuva)

IN TODAY'S BEST PHOTOS from around the world, we lead with an image from Australia, where the devastating bushfires have led to thousands of koala bears being brought to hospitals for medical treatment. In addition, we have the protests in Lebanon, a snowstorm in Norway, and ice skating in Moscow. 

Stockmann on Thursday said it expects its adjusted operating profit for last year to exceed its earlier, zero-growth forecast. (Heikki Saukkomaa – Lehtikuva)

CLASS-B SHARES in Stockmann jumped by more than 30 per cent yesterday after a positive profit warning issued by the iconic department store chain.

The Finnish retailer revealed yesterday morning that, based on preliminary data, it expects its adjusted operating profit for last year to exceed earlier forecasts due to the robust fourth-quarter performance of both Stockmann and Lindex.

A sketch of the proposed 'Little Finlandia' structure, released this afternoon (Image: Lehtikuva)

WITH HELSINKI'S ICONIC FINLANDIA HALL set to close for a multi-year renovation and restoration project, the first designs for its temporary replacement have already been drawn up. The 'Pikku-Finlandia' ('Little Finlandia') Hall will be a temporary pavilion-style structure located next to the main building. 

The opening hearing in a case against a teacher at the Police University College was held at the district Court of Pirkanmaa in Tampere, Finland, on 14 January 2020. (Jussi Nukari – Lehtikuva)

A TEACHER at the Police University College in Tampere has been charged with sexual abuse, sexual harassment and violation of official duty, report YLE and Helsingin Sanomat.

The middle-aged senior sergeant is accused of groping a fellow staff member and several police officers in training and, overall, conducting himself inappropriately both in his free time and teaching settings.

Displaced Syrians flee bombardment in Aleppo Province earlier today (Image: Lehtikuva)

IN TODAY'S BEST PHOTOS from around the world, we lead with a shot from Aleppo Province, where displaced Syrian civilians are fleeing intense bombardment from regime forces as the Syrian Arab Army attempts to retake southwestern Aleppo from rebel forces. We also have snowfall in Srinagar, impeachment stationery, and the aftermath of the Taal Volcano. 

A used syringe in Ruoholahti, Helsinki, on 31 January 2019. (Martti Kainulainen – Lehtikuva)

THE ATTITUDES of Finns toward drugs have evolved noticeably over the past decade.

The National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) on Monday reported that a growing share of respondents to its regular drug survey are not concerned about the dangers of drugs, view that drugs are easier to obtain and say they have either used or experimented with drugs.

Standstill at Neste’s refinery in Porvoo, Southern Finland, could have an impact on air and road traffic in Finland, writes Helsingin Sanomat. (Mikko Stig – Lehtikuva)

THE TWO-WEEK STRIKE threatening the forest and chemicals industry would also have an impact on the everyday lives of Finns, writes Helsingin Sanomat.

The newspaper reminded yesterday that although shutting down production plants in the forest industry would have the bigger impact on the national economy, ordinary people would be affected especially by strikes at pharmaceutical companies and the oil refineries of Neste.