On 10 December, MP Miapetra Kumpula-Natri led the founding of a new network of MPs for pro-EU and EU-interested members of parliament. MP Ville Kaunisto was elected Vice Chair of the network.
– Next year we celebrate 30 years of Finland’s EU membership, and with that it’s time to bring the EU debate to a new level too. Instead of endlessly arguing over whether to be a member or not, we could discuss how to get even more positive effects from EU membership for Finland, and follow the international discussion on the EU’s future plans, Kumpula-Natri envisions.
The network’s task is to serve as a platform for discussion on the future of the European Union and Finland’s role as an EU member. Through the network, MPs can find time for broader discussions with each other, with Finland’s MEPs, and with citizens and civil society.
JEF Finland and Eurooppalainen Suomi ry act as partners of the “Friends of the EU” network.
– I thank JEF Finland and Eurooppalainen Suomi for this initiative, and I look forward to broader and more in-depth discussions alongside parliamentary work, states Kaunisto.
JEF Finland’s President Nea-Bettina Baarman hopes the network will increase constructive EU debate and, in turn, inspire all MPs to delve deeper into EU and international affairs.
– MPs have great power to create constructive, fact-based EU debate, and I hope this network will serve as a key to that. The initiative came from JEF Finland, and I hope the network will draw on young people’s views and enthusiasm in its work, encourages President Baarman.
The network’s founding members include the following people:
Miapetra Kumpula-Natri, MP
Heikki Autto, MP
Karoliina Partanen, MP
Fatim Diarra, MP
Anna-Kaisa Ikonen, Minister of Local Government and Regional Affairs
Oras Tynkkynen, MP
Inka Hopsu, MP
Joakim Strand, Minister for European Affairs and Ownership Steering
Alviina Alametsä, MP
Lotta Hamari, MP
Jani Kokko, MP
Pauli Aalto-Setälä, MP
Ville Kaunisto, MP
Eemeli Peltonen, MP
Johannes Koskinen, MP
Jarno Limnéll, MP
Tero Suoniemi, Assistant
Henri Kaarakainen, Assistant
Veera Tyhtilä, Assistant
Sami Matikainen, JEF Finland
Riina Lumme, JEF Finland
Totti Sivonen, Eurooppalainen Suomi