Finland Prime Minister Resigns After Disagreement With Party Members

The Prime Minister of Finland, Antti Rinne, has resigned from office following disagreements with party members.

Rinne stepped down on Tuesday after the chairperson of the ruling coalition (the Centre Party), Katri Kulmuni, said she no longer believed in his capacity to lead the nation, after series of strike actions.

For more than two weeks, workers went on strike at Finland’s state postal service, Posti, the national airline, Finnair (FIA1S.HE), and at other industries before being settled recently.

 Kulmuni querried Rinne’s role in containing the strike on Monday but added she wanted the  five-member coalition to look out for a new prime minister to run the affairs of the nation.

The country’s President, Sauli Niinisto , while accepting the prime minister’s resignation, asked the centre-left cabinet to play the leadership role in  directing the affair of the nation, pending the formation of a new one.

On his part, Rinne threw his weight behind the move to constitute a new cabinet.

 “Next we will likely have fast government formation talks, and likely with the same coalition,” he said.

Reuters reports that Finland holds the rotating presidency of the European Union until the end of the year, playing a central role in efforts to hammer out a new budget for the bloc.