Prime Minister Petteri Orpo answers media questions in Helsinki on 30 June 2026 about the €35 million state support for the planned Helsinki Garden multi-purpose arena, which has caused confusion.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo knew the Ministry of Finance had opposed state backing for the Helsinki Garden arena before the project secured a €35 million conditional support pledge, one of his closest aides has said.
Katri Manninen, Orpo’s political special adviser, told Helsingin Sanomat that the project advanced as a National Coalition Party target with at least Orpo’s approval.
She said Orpo knew officials had taken a negative view of a state loan guarantee for the project. She added that the ministry’s detailed memo was not in Orpo’s possession, but that he knew the ministry’s position.
The statement adds pressure on Orpo, who has sought to limit his own role in the decision. He said last week that he had not taken part in preparing the proposal and that nobody had presented the project to him before the government’s mid-term budget talks.
