Helsinki-Vantaa merger study to be reviewed by the cities

The final report of a study on the possible merger of the cities of Helsinki and Vantaa has been approved by the study supervisory group.  

The group proposes that the city councils of Helsinki and Vantaa debate and decide on further actions on January 31, 2011 – either that preparations for the merger be commenced, or that such preparations not be undertaken.

According to the supervisory group, the current study lays a good basis for a thorough review of the benefits and drawbacks of the possible merger. 

The group’s chairman, Vantaa City Board Chairman Tapani Mäkinen, points out that the study is one of the largest ever undertaken on municipal mergers in Finland. The consequences of the merger were studied by seven teams, each focusing on specific themes, including democracy, social affairs and public health, education and culture, land use, housing, traffic and the environment, human resources, competitiveness and municipal finances, and administrative questions.