HELSINKI: Finland’s parliament will be able to accept a government proposal to temporarily reject asylum seekers arriving across the border from Russia if some amendments are made, an influential committee of legislators said on Tuesday.
The announcement by the chair of parliament’s constitutional committee is expected to pave the way for the controversial proposal to be approved in a plenary vote in due course.
Finland has accused Russia of weaponizing migration by encouraging hundreds of asylum seekers last year from countries such as Syria and Somalia to cross the border, an assertion the Kremlin denies.
Helsinki believes Moscow is promoting the crossings in retaliation for Finland joining NATO, which backs Ukraine against Russia’s invasion.
After first shutting all land border crossings with Russia late last year, preventing regular travel, the Finnish government in May presented legislation allowing border guards to stop migrants still arriving from seeking asylum.
While the plan clearly contradicts principles included in international human rights agreements, it is still justified as a temporary emergency measure under the circumstances, committee chair Heikki Vestman told a press conference.
For the legislation to pass it must be accompanied by a procedure giving those who are rejected a possibility to appeal the decision, said Vestman, who belongs to the ruling National Coalition Party.
No migrants have arrived across the border with Russia since March 13, official data shows.
Before the vote, the committee heard 18 experts, who were all against approving the law.
But in the end, 15 of the 17 parliamentarians on the constitutional committee gave their backing, with only the Left Alliance and Green Party representatives objecting.
“For the first time the Finnish state explicitly ignores the human rights system and European Union legislation,” Left Alliance lawmaker Anna Kontula said, adding that this could set a dangerous precedent.
Finnish law to stop migrants at Russia border makes progress in parliament
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Finnish law to stop migrants at Russia border makes progress in parliament
- Finland has accused Russia of weaponizing migration by encouraging hundreds of asylum seekers last year from countries such as Syria and Somalia to cross the border
- Helsinki believes Moscow is promoting the crossings in retaliation for Finland joining NATO, which backs Ukraine against Russia’s invasion
Record low homicide rates in London as mayor defends policies
LONDON: The number of homicides in London last year were the lowest since 2014, UK police data revealed Monday, at a time when mayor Sadiq Khan faces mounting criticism over criminality in the British capital.
There were 97 homicides in 2025, the lowest total since 2014, and London’s homicide rate per capita was the lowest since records began in 1997, according to the new figures.
“Many people have been trying to talk London down, but the evidence tells a very different story,” Khan said in a statement.
“It’s clear that our sustained focus on being both tough on crime and tough on the complex causes of crime is working,” he added.
Khan has faced fierce criticism from Conservative and far-right politicians in the UK, as well as international figures like X owner Elon Musk, who claim that criminality in London has increased.
Some of his critics pin the accusations on the mayor’s pro-immigration stance.
The Labour party politician, who became London’s first Muslim mayor in 2016 and regularly uses his platform to celebrate the capital’s diversity, has also faced rising Islamophobic attacks on social media.
“The statistics speak for themselves, London is a safe place to live, work and visit. Thanks to the work of our dedicated officers, violent crime has reduced, and homicides are at their lowest levels since 2014,” the Met police said in a press release.
Violent incidents resulting in injuries were down by a fifth since 2014, while National Health Service data showed that the number of people hospitalized after being stabbed in London fell by nearly 30 percent in the last five years.
The police also pointed out that London’s homicide rate per capita was the lowest on record despite a growing population, and claimed it was lower than other major cities like New York, Paris, Los Angeles and Berlin.
However, the latest release did not include data on other types of crime including thefts and sexual offenses.
Anti-immigration Reform UK last week said fighting crime in London would be a priority for the party going into key local elections in May and mayoral elections in 2028.
Its mayoral candidate Laila Cunningham last week said London “is no longer safe,” particularly for women.
Phone thefts also continue to plague the British capital, with the Met recording 117,211 stolen phones in 2024, up 25 percent from 91,481 in 2019.
