Chairperson Petteri Orpo of the National Coalition briefed the press on the coalition formation negotiations at the House of the Estates in Helsinki on Monday, 5 June 2023. Orpo admitted that the negotiators are faced with a number of challenging issues but voiced his confidence in wrapping up the negotiations shortly, possibly as soon as next week. (Jussi Nukari – Lehtikuva)

PETTERI ORPO, the chairperson of the National Coalition, believes the sixth week of the ongoing coalition formation negotiations is about major decisions.

“I’m still not understating even a bit how big and difficult questions we still have to resolve, but this is coming together now. The finish line is looming,” he was quoted saying at the House of the Estates in Helsinki on Monday by YLE.

Cutting boards are useful kitchen utensils that may be found in most homes and restaurants. However, a small-scale research published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology by the American Chemical Society reveals that they are an overlooked source of micrometer-sized particles. According to the researchers, cutting carrots on wood and plastic boards can generate tens of millions of microparticles every year.

A customer entering an office of the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri) in Helsinki in October 2019. Migri has warned that without additional investments in its ability to process work-based residence permit applications, the number of pending applications could exceed 200,000 by 2027, reports Helsingin Sanomat. (Vesa Moilanen – Lehtikuva)

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES for processing work-based residence permit applications are required to avoid major difficulties with work-based immigration from outside the EU, argue the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri) and Ministry for Foreign Affairs, according to Helsingin Sanomat.

The difficulties arise from an increase in the number of work-based residence applications, which has continued with the exception of the first year of the coronavirus pandemic, 2020.

During the Finnish Customs investigation, cash was found during residential searches. Some of the seized money was concealed within the structure of the suspect's residence, specifically inside the stove.

Finnish Customs (Tulli) has uncovered a significant criminal operation involving the smuggling of narcotic medications. The investigation, initially focused on drug trafficking, has revealed an estimated profit of over €160,000 from the illicit sale of controlled substances. In addition, over €700,000 in cash was seized during residential searches. Finnish Customs is investigating multiple serious offenses, including aggravated drug offenses and money laundering.

Oda’s delivery lorries at a fulfilment centre in Vantaa on 15 December, 2021. The Norwegian company said last week it is considering shutting down its consumer-facing grocery delivery enterprise in Finland, citing a “dramatic change” in the capital market. (Antti Aimo-Koivisto – Lehtikuva)

ODA, a Norwegian online grocery retailer, announced last week it is considering packing up its virtual bags in Finland.

The Norwegian company highlighted that it managed to become the largest home delivery service specifically for groceries in its little over a year of operation in Finland. It generated over 22 million euros in revenue in the 11 months of last fiscal year it was active in the country, with the revenue on track to improve to 34 million euros in 2023.

A Leopard 2R. Photo: The Finnish Army

Here is a selection of what the international press has published about Finland in the last week:

Finland Built Special Vehicles For Breaching Enemy Defenses—And Gave Them To Ukraine’s Weirdest Brigade

This article about Leopard 2R breaching vehicles that Finland recently donated to Ukraine was published in Forbes on May 31.

Young grieving man. LEHTIKUVA

Losing loved ones may have a significant impact on both psychological and physical health. The University of Arizona researched the influence of grief on heart function and discovered that intense grieving might induce a significant increase in blood pressure. According to the data, grieving may be a risk factor for cardiac events.

The study, published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, demonstrates an association between grief severity and elevated systolic blood pressure response.

A bullied boy in the staircase. LEHTIKUVA

The latest data from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) reveals that anxiety and experiences of bullying among 8th and 9th graders in middle school have increased. The percentage of students reporting moderate to severe anxiety in the spring 2023 survey is even higher than during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. In particular, girls have experienced a significant rise in anxiety compared to previous years.

Photo: EHT Collaboration

Researchers found, Black holes will eventually evaporate due to Hawking radiation, but the event horizon is not as important as previously thought.

New theoretical research from Radboud University's Michael Wondrak, Walter van Suijlekom, and Heino Falcke has shown that Stephen Hawking was partially correct about black holes.