The Guggenheim Foundation says there is no hurry for Helsinki decision-makers to come to a conclusion regarding the proposed museum. The Foundation ensures that it is committed to its international museum network, although it announced it was closing its museum in Berlin at the start of the week.

Most district leaders of the Centre Party are not yet willing to name the candidate they will support for the party’s next leader. The Centre will choose the chair at its party conference in Rovaniemi in June.

An expert on Nokia predicts that the mobile phone giant will remain important for Finland in the future, though mobile phone manufacturing is winding down in Europe. The comments come fresh off Nokia's announcement to let thousands of people go in Europe, including Finland.

The Finnish radiation safety watchdog, STUK, says an isotope manufacturer in Budapest is the source of small amounts of radioactive iodine (I-131) found in outdoor air samples in Finland last month.

At least 76 parliamentarians from across the political spectrum have signed a motion favouring a law to allow gender-neutral marriage. The MPs presented their proposal on Wednesday.

The effective age of retirement has risen slightly in Finland. According to figures released by the Finnish Centre for Pensions, the average age of a person retiring on an old-age pension last year was 60.5 years. The increase over the previous year was 0.1 years.

Forest industry giant Stora Enso announced job cuts on Wednesday at many of its plants across Europe. The company plans to axe a total of 240 jobs from its mills in Finland, Sweden, France and Germany.

Roma beggars from Romania have been living in subzero temperatures in a disused building in the southern Finnish town of Järvenpää. Welfare officials have visited the premises on two occasions but have failed to find any residents. Other groups of panhandlers are also on the streets in Helsinki and Tampere.