Finnish public puts parties under pressure

Since the local elections in Finland last autumn a discussion has been simmering about how the parties finance their election campaigns. The discussion was reignited following the European elections. The daily Lapin Kansa comments: "Even though the scandal over the parties' election funding has gone on all summer most of the parties still insist on remaining silent about their financial backers. … When they were asked directly many companies decided to reveal what they had donated. The companies have understood that concealment damages their reputations. The individual revelations have caused a stir. The companies' statements and the resulting publicity have increased the pressure on the parties to finally reveal the details of their campaign financing. The parties have apparently forgotten the old saying 'better in one go than in dribs and drabs'. Facts that slowly come to light stay longer in the headlines."

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