Paavo Arhinmäki

Paavo Arhinmaki
File:Ordforande for Finska delegationen Paavo Arhinmaki vid Nordiska Radets session i Stockholm (2).jpg
Minister of Culture and Sport
In office 22 June 2011 (2011-06-22) – 4 April 2014 (2014-04-04)
Prime Minister	Jyrki Katainen
Preceded by	Stefan Wallin
Succeeded by	Pia Viitanen
Member of Parliament
Incumbent
Assumed office 21.3.2007
Constituency	Helsinki
Personal details
Born	(1976-12-13) 13 December 1976 Helsinki, Finland
Political party	Left Alliance

Paavo Erkki Arhinmäki (born December 13, 1976 in Helsinki) is a Finnish politician, a member of the Finnish Parliament and a former Minister for Culture and Sport, representing the Left Alliance, whose leader he has been since June 2009. He was first elected to the Finnish Parliament in the 2007 election and reelected in 2011. Arhinmäki has been a member of the Helsinki city council since 2001. He led the Left Youth in 2001–2005. He proposed a halt to nuclear power projects in Finland in the wake of the Great Hanshin earthquake.

After the 2011 election the Left Alliance became a partner in the six-party grand coalition cabinet led by Jyrki Katainen. The football enthusiast Arhinmäki became Minister for Culture and Sport, and the party gained another ministerial portfolio as well. The decision to join the government created a split in the party, leading to the expulsion of two MPs from the parliamentary group.

In 2012 Arhinmäki was a Left Alliance candidate in the Finnish Presidential Elections, finishing 6th with 5.5% of the total votes in the first round of voting.

Arhinmäki became the subject of media criticism after a drinking binge at the Sochi Winter Olympics in February 2014.

In 2014 Left Alliance left the cabinet over dispute on a package of spending cuts and tax rises.

External links

• Parliament of Finland: Paavo Arhinmäki (Finnish)