Roundup: Former Finnish FM plans to launch new party

Former Finnish Centrist leader and former Foreign Minister Paavo Vayrynen has announced he would form a new political party to promote his political goals.

Talking to the media in Helsinki on Friday, Vayrynen listed Finland's exit from the euro zone and securing the status as a country outside military alliances as key goals. "There are strong forces working to get Finland into NATO or at least allied via the European Union", Vayrynen warned.

Vayrynen accused the Center Party-led government under party chairman Juha Sipila of pursuing "right-wing liberal" policies instead of traditional centrist values.

Vayrynen is currently a member of the European Parliament. He did not take up his seat in Finnish parliament after elections in April 2015 as he did not get a position in the new cabinet.

Local commentators believe the move by Vayrynen has no immediate threat to Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila. The neoliberal leaning policies of the government have caused consternation on the party floor, but the victory of Sipila in an internal cabinet crisis in November over the conservatives in introducing regional administration in Finland silenced criticis. On Thursday Vayrynen singled out neoliberal measures such as allowing shops to be open without restrictions.

When selecting government ministers in May 2015, Sipila bypassed several long time centrists while first term MP Anne Berner was chosen as transport minister. Businesswoman Berner had been associated earlier with a neoliberal think tank in Finland.

The Sipila cabinet has been seen reflecting the interests of the industries and attempts to find common ground with the wage earners have not progressed so far. Vayrynen said on Friday the government is ideologically close to the line of the conservatives and does not reflect the election results of April 2015.

While initial comments from current centrist top brass were cautious, former Party Secretary Jarmo Korhonen predicted on Friday Vayrynen's plans would cause problems to all parties. "At least one third of the supporters of each party are critical of the euro", Korhonen told broadcaster Yle.

Vayrynen said his party would take part in next parliamentary, presidential and European elections in Finland, but would skip local and regional levels. He ran himself as centrist in presidential election in 2012, but did not make it to the second round between conservative Sauli Niinisto and green Pekka Haavisto. Analysts said the entry of Vayrynens party could split the support of the center and right camp for a re-election of Sauli Niinisto and improve the chances of a left liberal candidate. The incumbent Finnish President Sauli Niinisto has said he would not announce his bid for re-election until early 2017 though.

In opinion polls, the Centre Party under Sipila has lost its number one position to the opposition Social Democratic Party. Of the three government parties, the True Finns and the Conservatives have also suffered major loss of backing. Latest polls indicated many of the supporters of the populist True Finns had now found no party to support following disappointment with True Finns.

Born in 1946, Vayrynen's career in Finnish politics dates back to early 1970s and he was profiled as a favourite of the long time president Urho Kekkonen, in office until 1981. Vayrynen served as Foreign Minister in four governments, in 1970s, 1980s and 1990s and was Minister for Foreign Trade between 2007 and 2011.

Party leader Juha Sipila is an IT sector millionaire who was elected to parliament in 2011 and became party chairman in 2012. Vayrynen had been party chairman from 1980 to 1990, but ran against Sipila in 2012 without success.

Vayrynen was able to get 50,000 Finns signing a parliamentary civic initiative about the exit from the Euro zone in 2015. The initiative will reach parliamentary processing later this year. Endit