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26.5.2026 | The Government discussed preparedness for drone threats, instructions and communications to the public in its extraordinary informal meeting on Tuesday 26 May.

25.5.2026 | At a roundtable event on 25 May 2026, representatives of wellbeing services counties, cities and labour market organisations developed a shared understanding of how to address drone-related threats and communicate about them to the public. The purpose of the discussion was to strengthen the resilience of society and increase understanding of what has already been done to ensure preparedness and how it can be further developed through cooperation. 

8.4.2026 | The Ministry of the Interior will allocate around EUR 44 million in EU funding to projects on border management, crime prevention and migration. The projects will improve the capabilities of security authorities, develop information systems, and secure resources for the authorities to manage migration. The funding will be granted from the EU Home Affairs Funds, under the autumn 2025 call for proposals.

The aim of terminology work at the Prime Minister's Office is to harmonise the terms used in government texts, both in the national languages of Finland and in foreign languages, and to promote clear communication. This facilitates cooperation between branches of government and ensures that the same terms are used consistently across languages.

15.5.2026 | In the early hours of Friday 15 May, the Finnish Defence Forces received information about a risk that drones larger than previously sighted and carrying heavier explosive payloads could stray into Finland. For this reason, the Ministry of the Interior issued an emergency warning for the Uusimaa region as a precautionary measure shortly before 4.00.

8.12.2025 | The Ministry of the Interior has commissioned the Emergency Services Academy Finland to prepare a report on the current state and development needs of the fixed public warning system. The report will be completed in December 2026.

22.12.2025 | The start of 2026 will see the entry into force of new acts and decrees. This press release provides a summary of the most important changes in the Ministry of the Interior’s government branch.

31.3.2026 | The authorities and the state leadership are monitoring changes in the security situation, assessing future risks and ensuring that our society continues to function in all circumstances. Finland is not currently facing a military threat. 

1.12.2025 | The obligation to purchase and maintain smoke alarms will be transferred from the resident to the owner of the building on 1 January 2026. Building owners, that is housing companies and rental housing companies, have made good use of the two-year transition period following the amendments to the Rescue Act and have taken the necessary measures in good time.

18.8.2025 | By decision of the Ministry of the Interior, Finland has sent a module for ground forest firefighting to Spain to help manage wildfires raging across the country. The module will be deployed in Spain for about a week.

17.3.2025 | Finland will host Rescue Borealis 2025, a Nordic exercise focusing on the Euro-Arctic cross-border cooperation involving rescue services in Finland, Sweden and Norway. Rescue Borealis 2025 includes a field training exercise that will take place near Oulu between 29 September and 3 October 2025.

21.9.2023 | On Thursday 21 September, the Government appointed Kimmo Kohvakka, Master of Military Science, as Director General for Rescue Services at the Ministry of the Interior for the period from 1 November 2023 to 31 October 2028.

24.7.2024 | Finland will participate in a rescue service deployment by sending 48 experts in international civil protection to Portugal. These experts will be tasked with helping local authorities manage wildfires. The first of two groups will leave for Portugal at the beginning of August.

14.8.2023 | Finland is deploying the first group of 24 rescue workers on Wednesday 16 August to help Portugal manage wildfires.

17.2.2023 | Finland will send fire engines, an ambulance, a tanker truck and equipment needed for rescue operations to Ukraine on Friday 17 February. These vehicles and equipment were donated by the Rescue Departments of Central Uusimaa and Pirkanmaa. Assistance will be delivered to Ukraine through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.

3.1.2023 | The Finnish rescue services responded to about 100,700 emergency calls last year, of which about 66,600 were urgent. Of these calls, 11,856 were fires and 16,210 were traffic accidents. The total number of emergency calls was slightly lower than the average in preceding years. For example, in 2018–2020, the average number of emergency calls responded by the rescue services was over 107,000 a year.

16.2.2023 | The Government has adopted a resolution on the National Strategy for the Prevention of and Response to Environmental Damage extending to 2035. The Strategy was adopted at the government session on 16 February. Its main objective is to guide the authorities’ preparedness for current and future threats of environmental damage. The Strategy needed to be updated to ensure that the responsibilities of different actors are in line with the current legislation.

9.2.2022 | The final reports of the “Capacity of and planning criteria for rescue services and civil emergency preparedness” project have been published on the Institutional Repository for the Government (Valto). The objective of the project was to produce a basis for the national planning criteria for rescue services and investigate how well the resources and capacity of rescue services and civil emergency preparedness correspond to the operating environment, risks and customer needs. 

24.5.2021 | The Ministry of the Interior has submitted the draft equality and non-discrimination action plan for rescue services for statements. The aim of the action plan is rescue services that actively and systematically promote equality in the long term. The draft action plan will be out for comments from 24 May to 30 June 2021.

20.12.2023 | The start of 2024 will see the entry into force of amendments to acts and decrees. This press release provides a summary of the most important changes.