President Halonen presides over her last opening of Parliament

MPs want more information from President

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President Tarja Halonen feels that her communications with Parliament have been good and seamless.
      Speaking on Tuesday at the opening of Parliament – the last such event in her presidency – Halonen said that the Foreign Affairs Committee and the Defence Committee have always been welcome to hold discussions with the President. Also, those civil servants who have accompanied Halonen on foreign travel have also been available to Parliament whenever needed.
      “I believe that the President will continue to maintain contact with Parliament in this respect, as long as the desire for this is expressed.”
     
Not all MPs are fully satisfied with the way that Halonen has maintained contact with Parliament. Ben Zyskowicz (Nat. Coalition Party) says that Parliament had hoped for more information, especially on negotiations with heads of state during state visits.
      Defence Committee chairman Jussi Niinistö (The Finns Party) says that his committee has met Halonen once.
      “Her interest is more in global issues than national ones. I would have liked the President to make initiatives and as the Commander in Chief, to take up issues related to the reform of the Defence Forces”, Niinistö said.
     
Constitutional Law Committee chairman Johannes Koskinen (SDP) says that he would have liked for contacts with the Foreign Affairs Committee to be more flexible. “It has been formulaic: a couple of times a year at the coffee table. The meetings could be longer, and more like seminars.”
      Foreign Affairs Committee member Aila Paloniemi (Centre Party) hopes that the committee’s chairman Timo Soini (The Finns Party) would be in contact soon with president-elect Sauli Niinistö on how the interaction should take place.
      “From time to time one would have liked for Halonen to be in closer contact in matters such as discussions with Russia’s leaders”, Paloniemi says.
     
At her speech in Parliament on Tuesday Halonen called for one small change in the constitution: she feels that the date of the inauguration of a new president should be set as March 1st, regardless of whether or not the President is elected in the first or second round.
      At present, the law states that the President takes office on the first day of the month following his or her election. This means that if the president is elected in the first round, the inauguration of the new president would take place a few days after the election.
      In such a situation, the president in office and his or her civil servants would have to make room for the new president at short notice.
     
Johannes Koskinen says that such a change could be made in connection with other proposed constitutional amendments that are expected in the near future.
      “Perhaps this should not be made as a separate change.”
      Koskinen says that the initiative in the matter is in the hands of the Ministry of Justice.


Links:
  Parliament of Finland: The Opening of the Parliamentary Session

Helsingin Sanomat