Today (10 November 2022), the Finnish Government approved its report on Nordic cross-border barriers. The report responds to the entry in the Government Programme stating that Finland wants to further facilitate the movement of citizens between the Nordic countries, work actively to remove existing cross-border barriers, and seek to ensure that new ones are not created. The minister in charge, Thomas Blomqvist, Minister for Nordic Cooperation and Equality, emphasises the importance of providing this report to the Parliament.
“By shining a light on cross-border work and existing barriers, we can increase people’s understanding and thereby contribute to boosting efforts to remove cross-border barriers. Efforts to remove and prevent such barriers benefit us all and make Nordic everyday life easier in relation to studying, working, running a business and living in any of the Nordic countries,” says minister Blomqvist.
The vision for Nordic cooperation is to make the Nordic region the world’s most sustainable and integrated region by 2030. Cross-border work is centralised in order for this integration target to be fulfilled.
“Free movement has been at the heart of Nordic cooperation from the start. Our shared job market and passport-free travel, implemented in the 1950s, laid the foundations. We were pioneers then and we must continue to be pioneers now,” Blomqvist says. Efforts to remove cross-border barriers are one way to protect free movement. The work may appear technical at times but it is the key to boundless opportunities within Nordic cooperation.
The vision of becoming the world’s most sustainable and integrated region is at least as relevant now as it was on its adoption in August 2019. The current situation has clearly emphasised the need not only for a green transition but also for integration.
“Increased interest towards Nordic cooperation means that there is momentum for intensifying cross-border work. This cooperation strengthens the Nordic region and a borderless market brings great competitive advantages. To fulfil the potential of these efforts, it is important that we actively continue to remove and prevent cross-border barriers,” Blomqvist concludes.
Read the Government Report on Nordic Cross-Border Barriers here
Further information:
Carolina Nordling
Special Adviser, tel. +358 50 359 4026
