Finland's social benefits agency Kela is currently looking for a new director general, with current chief Outi Antila set to retire at the end of May.
The prominent public position's term lasts seven years, and the salary is more than 20,000 euros per month, tabloid Iltalehti reports.
There have been few applications for the role so far, but according to IL, a number of people with ministerial experience have considered the role, albeit behind the scenes.
One of them is former Centre Party leader Annika Saarikko, who confirmed her interest in the position to the tabloid.
The position has traditionally been held by someone from the Centre Party. However, this longstanding tradition was broken when Outi Antila, a public servant who led the Insurance and Social Security unit at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, was appointed.
Saarikko has served as Minister for Family Affairs and Social Services in Juha Sipilä's (Centre) government from 2017–2019. In Sanna Marin's (SDP) government, Saarikko served as Minister of Finance and Minister of Science and Culture.
Other possible contenders for the job include Lasse Lehtonen, Director of Helsinki University Hospital's Diagnostic Services, Minister of Social Security Sanni Grahn-Laasonen (NCP), and First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Paula Risikko (NCP).
The appointment of the director general position is based on a recommendation by Kela's board and then finally decided by a group of cross-party MPs.
Riskier real estate funds
Helsingin Sanomat explored the issue of several real estate funds suspending redemptions, which left many investors unable to cash out.
For example, last week, Speaker of Parliament Jussi Halla-aho (Finns) disclosed that he had money stuck in Ålandsbanken’s housing fund and expressed disappointment that the product was marketed to him as risk-free.
HS' review of fund risk classifications highlights the vague communication of risks to investors and the frequent adjustments to real estate fund risk ratings over the years.
Regulations require funds to clearly disclose their risk categories on a seven-point scale, with 1 indicating very low risk and 7 signifying a high-risk investment product.
HS reports that OP and Ålandsbanken, which manage Finland's two most popular real estate funds, previously labelled their housing funds as low-risk, with ratings of two and three, respectively.
Since then, Ålandsbanken's risk rating has risen from two to three, a step higher than before. Meanwhile, OP's rating jumped from three to six, transforming a relatively low-risk product into a quite risky one.
The funds made these adjustments quietly, without explicitly notifying investors.
HS said the changes stem from regulatory adjustments, as a new European regulation on investor protection altered the method for calculating fund risk ratings in early 2023.
Before the regulation change, real estate funds calculated their risk based on price volatility, similar to how stock market risks are assessed.
Since 2023, real estate funds can choose to base their risk ratings on volatility or disregard it. If they don't use price fluctuations, they automatically receive a risk rating of six, the second-highest, which is what happened to OP's fund.
Yle News reported about the issue last week, as OP's real estate fund freeze impacted investments of more than 50,000 customers.
Stomach bug in Lapland wilderness
Metsähallitus, Finland's state natural resource management firm, has issued a warning about an outbreak of an unidentified gastrointestinal illness in the Käsivarsi Wilderness Area in Lapland.
According to tabloid Ilta-Sanomat, over the past few days, local tourism operators have assisted ill travellers from locations such as Saanajärvi, Termisjärvi, Saarijärvi, Kuonjarjoki, and Meeko. Last week, Lapland rescue services evacuated one severely ill tourist from the area.
The firm noted that while cases remain low, the illness poses a serious risk in wilderness conditions due to its rapid onset and potential delays in accessing medical help.
Symptoms include vomiting, diarrhoea, and fever, though the cause is still unidentified.
Metsähallitus advises avoiding cabins and toilets at the affected sites, emphasises the importance of good hand hygiene, and recommends cancelling hiking plans if feeling unwell.