Decision-making

The City Executive Board is elected for each term of the City Council.

The City Executive Board has nine members, from whom the City Council elects the Chair and the first and second Vice-Chairs for its term of office.

Members of the City Executive Board are elected from among the councillors. Deputy members may also be elected from among the deputy councillors.

The members are listed in the table below.

Meeting times:

The City Executive Board has a Vitality Group comprising seven members. People other than members of the City Board may also be appointed to the group. The City Council appoints the group’s chairpersons and members for its term of office.

The members are listed in the table below.

The City Council is elected for a single term at a time.

The council has 35 councillors. In addition to the chair, the council has a first and second vice-chair. The term of office for the chair and vice-chairs is two (2) years.

The members are listed in the table below.

	Chair Timo Suhonen, Member of Parliament, tel. 040 356 6869 timo.suhonen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP		1st Vice-Chair Risto Husu, MSc (Econ) Tel. 0400 541 593 risto.husu@lh.varkaus.fi , KOK
	2nd Vice-Chair Matti Semi, builder, pensioner matti.semi@lh.varkaus.fi VAS		Councillor Heikki Alanen, parish councillor, pensioner heikki.alanen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP
	Councillor Asikainen Minna , entrepreneur, managing director , tel. 045 146 4500 minna.asikainen@lh.varkaus.fi KOK		Councillor Elina Brandt, special needs teacher , tel. 050 347 5947 elina.brandt@lh.varkaus.fi SDP
	Councillor Tiina Grönlund, entrepreneur, engineer Tel. 044 556 4595 tiina.gronlund@lh.varkaus.fi PS		Councillor Jukka Hartikainen, engineer jukka.hartikainen@lh.varkaus.fi KD
	Councillor Pia Hedman, social worker (YAMK) Tel. 040 744 2300 pia.hedman@lh.varkaus.fi SDP		Councillor Kati Hynninen, Customer Relations Manager, Nurse tel. 0400 306 747 kati.hynninen@lh.varkaus.fi KOK
	Councillor Ari Häkkinen, wheel loader and excavator operator Tel. 050 587 9264 ari.hakkinen@lh.varkaus.fi VAS		Councillor Häyrinen Petteri , paramedic petteri.hayrinen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP
	Councillor Tatu Karvinen, student tatu.karvinen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP		Councillor Tarja Kivikoski, pensioner tarja.kivikoski@lh.varkaus.fi SDP
	Councillor Hilkka Koponen, Finance Manager, pensioner Tel. 0400 882 176 hilkka.koponen@lh.varkaus.fi KOK		Councillor Koponen Olli district heating expert, farmer tel. 0400 897 492 olli.koponen@lh.varkaus.fi KESK
	Councillor Antti Koskinen, MSc (Econ), headteacher antti.koskinen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP		Councillor Antti Kosunen, plumber antti.kosunen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP
	Councillor Nina Laakkonen, special needs teacher Tel. 040 590 3671 nina.laakkonen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP		Kaatrasalo Pekka , Civil Engineer (AMK), entrepreneur pekka.kaatrasalo@lh.varkaus.fi KD
	Councillor Kirsti Lumiala, MA, Emeritus Library Director kirsti.lumiala@lh.varkaus.fi SDP		Councillor Majuri Maarit , Doctor maarit.majuri@lh.varkaus.fi KESK
	Councillor Väinö Makkonen, youth worker vaino.makkonen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP		Councillor Marko Natunen, Head of Planning and Project Operations marko.natunen@lh.varkaus.fi KOK
	Councillor Matti Nieminen, Master of Laws, entrepreneur matti.nieminen@lh.varkaus.fi KESK		Councillor Paula Pulliainen, Class Teacher, Retired , Tel. 040 766 5050 paula.pulliainen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP
	Councillor Tuula Pöllänen, nurse tuula.pollanen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP		Councillor Jorma Saastamoinen, logistics supervisor, coach jorma.saastamoinen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP
	Councillor Tarja Saharinen, PhD in Health Sciences, nurse tarja.saharinen@lh.varkaus.fi KESK		Councillor Niina Sirviö, machinist niina.sirvio@lh.varkaus.fi SDP
	Councillor Juha Soininen, Regional Representative (retired ), tel. 040 579 1600 juha.soininen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP		Councillor Suna Sassa , Senior Constable, Health and Safety Representative suna.sassa@lh.varkaus.fi KOK
	Councillor Marja Sundgrén, actress, musician (AMK) marja.sundgren@lh.varkaus.fi VAS		Councillor Nea Tolvanen, Paramedic (YAMK), Chief Shop Steward nea.tolvanen@lh.varkaus.fi SDP
	Councillor Tuovinen Esa , Technical Director, CTO Tel. 040 552 6341 esa.tuovinen@lh.varkaus.fi KOK

Meeting times:

LINK to the meeting:

If the embed does not appear, you can watch the meeting live on our YouTube channel. 

The meetings are transcribed afterwards and are available to watch as recordings on our YouTube channel. 

•  LINK to the city's YouTube channel
• LINK to the subtitled video on the YouTube channel

Members of the Central Election Committee 2025–2029

Both members and deputy members must represent parties that stood in the spring local elections; in other words, as long as even one party is not represented, no more than one representative from any single party may be elected to the Central Election Committee.

The members are listed in the table below.

Meetings of the Central Election Committee:

The Election Committee meets in connection with the elections. 

The Committee for the Promotion of Well-being is part of the Well-being and Education Division, which shares administrative functions with the Committee for Growth and Learning. The promotion of well-being and inclusion forms part of the division’s shared administration.

The following fall under the remit of the Wellbeing Promotion Committee:

• library services
• cultural and events services
• sports services
• museum services
• youth services
• Soisalo College

The task of the Wellbeing Promotion Committee is to be responsible for organising high-quality and diverse wellbeing services, as well as the services of Soisalo College (liberal adult education, basic arts education) in cooperation with other services within the sector. The committee is responsible for the tasks of the services under its remit as defined in legislation, other regulations and other separately specified duties.

To carry out its duties, the committee and the organisation under its remit work in close cooperation with other city departments, voluntary organisations, the business community, various authorities, neighbouring municipalities and other bodies.

Wellbeing Promotion Committee 2025–2029

The Committee for the Promotion of Wellbeing is elected for one council term at a time.

The City Council elects seven (7) members and an equal number of deputy members to the Committee for the Promotion of Wellbeing for its term of office. The City Council elects a chair and a vice-chair from among the committee members.

The members are listed in the table below.

*Jukka Häyrinen and Marja Sundgren will share their seat between the Wellbeing Promotion and Growth and Learning Committees for 2 years, switching roles for the remaining 2 years.

Meeting times:

Regional Subcommittee 2021–2025

The Committee for the Promotion of Wellbeing has a Regional Subcommittee for Soisalo College, which is elected for one council term at a time.

The City of Varkaus elects three members to the Regional Subcommittee and personal deputies for them. The municipalities of Heinävesi and Joroinen appoint two full members and a personal deputy for each for the duration of the council term. The municipality of Leppävirta and the town of Pieksämäki shall appoint one representative to the regional subcommittee, who shall have the right to attend and speak at meetings. The members of the City of Varkaus on the regional subcommittee are elected by the Committee for the Promotion of Wellbeing. One of the members from the City of Varkaus must be a member of the Committee for the Promotion of Wellbeing and shall act as chair of the regional subcommittee. The Director of Welfare and Education for the City of Varkaus acts as the rapporteur at the Regional Subcommittee’s meetings.

The members are listed in the table below.

The Growth and Learning Committee is responsible for:

• early years education
• basic education

The Growth and Learning Committee is responsible for the tasks defined in legislation and other regulations within its remit, as well as other separately specified tasks. The Committee’s task is to organise high-quality and diverse early childhood education and basic education services that promote well-being and health. To fulfil its remit, the Committee and the organisation under its authority work in close cooperation with the city’s other sectors, voluntary organisations, the business community, various authorities, neighbouring municipalities and other bodies.

Members of the Growth and Learning Committee 2025–2029

The Growth and Learning Committee is elected for one council term at a time. The City Council elects seven (7) members and an equal number of personal deputies to the Growth and Learning Committee for its term of office. The City Council elects a chair and vice-chair from among the committee members.

The members are listed in the table below.

*Marja Sundgren and Jukka Häyrinen will share the seat between the Wellbeing Promotion and Growth and Learning Committees for 2 years, switching roles for the remaining 2 years.

Meeting times:

Members of the Audit Committee 2025–2029

The Audit Committee is elected for one council term at a time.

The Committee consists of a Chair, a Vice-Chair and three (3) other members. Each member has a personal deputy. The Chair and Vice-Chair must be councillors.

The members are listed in the table below.

Meeting times:

 Assessment report

In accordance with Section 121 of the Local Government Act, the Audit Committee must submit an annual evaluation report to the City Council on the achievement of the operational and financial targets set by the Council. On 26 May 2025, the Audit Committee submitted to the City Council the evaluation report for 2024, attached as Annex 26.

• Evaluation Report

The Technical Committee is responsible for the city’s public spaces, water supply and other technical services. The Technical Committee is responsible for the tasks defined in legislation and other regulations within its remit, as well as other separately specified tasks. 

In addition, the committee is responsible for

• town planning
• land allocation
• geographic information and mapping services
• the acquisition and transfer of land
• transport
• the functionality of the urban structure
• amenity and safety
• the cityscape
• public transport arrangements and other comparable matters
• premises
• public spaces
• networks
• land and water assets, including associated equipment.

In addition, the committee is responsible for the local management and funding of the regional rescue service.

Members of the Technical Committee 2025–2029

The Technical Committee is elected for one council term at a time.

The City Council elects seven (7) members and an equal number of personal deputies to the Technical Committee for its term of office. The City Council elects a chair and vice-chair from among the committee members.

The members are listed in the table below.

Meeting times:

 Permits Sub-committee of the Technical Committee

The Licensing Subcommittee of the Technical Committee is elected for one council term at a time.

The City Council elects five (5) members and an equal number of personal deputies to the Licensing Subcommittee for its term of office. The Chair of the Licensing Subcommittee must be a member or deputy member of the Technical Committee.

The members are listed in the table below.

In accordance with the cooperation agreement between the cities of Varkaus and Pieksämäki and the municipalities of Joroinen and Leppävirta, and Chapter 7 of the City of Varkaus’s administrative regulations, the Employment Area Committee is responsible for the tasks assigned to it by legislation, in other regulations, and in other separately specified tasks.

The Employment Area Committee acts as a cooperation body as defined in the cooperation agreement pursuant to Section 52 of the Local Government Act.

Members of the Central Savo Employment Area Committee 2025–2029

The Employment Area Committee has ten (10) members, of whom Varkaus and Pieksämäki each have three (3) and Leppävirta and Joroinen each have two (2).

The contracting municipalities of the employment area each select full members and their personal deputies in accordance with the number of seats allocated to each municipality, and submit their names to the Varkaus City Council for approval by the Employment Area Committeefor approval. Each member has one vote in voting situations, and in the event of a tie, the chairperson’s vote is decisive.

Each contracting municipality also has the right to appoint one (1) other representative who has the right to speak and attend meetings of the Employment Area Committee.

The chairmanship of the Employment Area Committee shall rotate in such a way that, in the first year of each council term, the chairmanship is held by Varkaus, in the second year in Pieksämäki, in the third year in Leppävirta and in the fourth year in Joroinen.

The vice-chairmanship rotates such that the municipality which holds the chairmanship the following year serves as vice-chairman in the year preceding the chairmanship. In the launch years of the new organisational arrangement, 2024 and 2025, the chairmanship of the committee will be held by the City of Varkaus and the vice-chairmanship by the City of Pieksämäki.

The members are listed in the table below.

Warpaset, or the Varkaus Children’s Parliament, brings the activities that promote participation and a sense of community in schools to the municipal level. The participants are elected by the school student councils, with three representatives from each primary school. Warpaset meets twice a year in the council chamber at Varkaus Town Hall. The chair is a local councillor and the secretary is the participation coordinator for youth services.

The pupil council is the pupils’ official channel for influence, based on the law and the curriculum. By law, the pupil council must be able to influence matters concerning pupils, various plans and, for example, the school.

Youth worker/participation
: Väino Makkonen
041 7326606
vaino.makkonen@varkaus.fi

The Varkaus Youth Council, Wanuva, is an expert and consultative body reporting to the City Council, comprising young people aged 13–22 from Varkaus, which focuses on matters affecting young people. The Wanuva Youth Council is a group of young influencers that is non-denominational and non-partisan. You can join at any time during the two-year term.

Wanuva’s office is located at Nuorten Talo, entrance via door B3 (Osmajoentie 28 b, 78210 Varkaus)

The Wanuva Youth Council meets on the second Tuesday of every month from 4.00 pm to 5.30 pm.

You can read Wanuva’s rules below:

Wanuva’s rules

Wanuva Chair:
Onni Kuvaja
040 6609888
onni.kuvaja1@gmail.com

Youth worker/participation
Väinö Makkonen
041 732 6606
vaino.makkonen@varkaus.fi

Youth worker
Maiju Vaalimaa
044 743 6634
maiju.vaalimaa@varkaus.fi

You can find the minutes via the link below.

• Minutes of the Wanuvan Youth Council

All schools in Varkaus have a student council. The student council comprises all the pupils at the school. The student council executive committee is a body elected by the pupils, which represents all the pupils at the school. The council leads the student council’s activities, in which everyone is involved. All pupils are equally important members of the student council and the school community, and everyone has the right to influence matters that affect them. The Student Council is supported by a supervising teacher, who also liaises with other teachers and the headteacher. The Student Council is an important part of the school, just like the teachers, the headteacher and the rest of the school staff.

Through the student council, pupils can make their voices heard on matters that affect them and influence the development of their school community. The student council promotes interaction and cooperation among students as well as between all members of the school community. In the student council, pupils learn to use negotiation and advocacy skills for life. It is important that pupils’ participation is not limited to merely being consulted, but that they have genuine opportunities to influence decisions made at the school. If pupils notice an issue at school, an individual pupil can pass on a message to the headteacher via the student council.

You can check the information in the Register of Interests for each elected representative and public official subject to the disclosure requirement via the institutions’ contact details

via this link.

The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities’ guidelines on declaring interests https://www.kuntaliitto.fi/julkaisut/2025/2244-sidonnaisuuksien-ilmoittaminen-kunnassa

The disclosure obligation applies to the following: 

• the chair and vice-chairs of the council
• members, deputy members and the rapporteur of the City Executive Board
• members, deputy members and the rapporteur of the Technical Committee
• members, deputy members and the rapporteur of the Technical Committee’s Licensing Sub-committee
• the chairs, vice-chairs and rapporteurs of other committees

The Audit Committee is the controller of the city’s register of interests. The Audit Committee is responsible for publishing the public information in the register of interests on the city’s website and for bringing declarations of interests to the attention of the City Council once a year.  If necessary, the Audit Committee may request a person subject to the disclosure obligation to submit a new declaration or to supplement a declaration already submitted.

The municipality must maintain a register of interests on a public information network, unless otherwise provided for in provisions concerning confidentiality. Only the information required by law shall be stored in the register of interests. Upon the termination of a position of trust or a role, the information concerning the person shall be removed from the network.

Each declarant is personally responsible for providing their information and ensuring its accuracy, as well as for updating the information should it change. The municipality acts solely as a recorder and publisher of the information. 

The Disability Council consists of seven (7) members, two (2) of whom are representatives of organisations. Each member has a personal deputy. The term of office for members is the same as that of the City Executive Board.

Duties of the Disability Council

• The Varkaus Disability Council is a working group comprising the city, people with disabilities living in the area, their relatives and disability organisations.
• to promote cooperation between the authorities, people with disabilities and disability organisations in the city.
• To make proposals and recommendations, and to act as an advisory body to the city’s various authorities. Appoint working groups to prepare matters, which may include representatives from disability organisations, the parish and various authorities in addition to members of the Disability Council.
• Monitor the city’s general decision-making on social issues from the perspective of people with disabilities.
• Monitor the implementation of statutory services, support measures and other benefits for people with disabilities in the city and promote the Disability Council’s opportunities to participate in the preparation of matters and influence local government decisions.
• promote the equal participation of people with disabilities in various aspects of society, such as education, work, housing, social and health services, and cultural, sporting and leisure activities.
• ensure that information is provided on the matters it deals with.
• prepare the action plan for the following year and submit an annual report.
• carry out other tasks assigned by the City Executive Board that fall within the remit of the Disability Council.
• One of the Disability Council’s most important tasks is to monitor the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Disability Council email address: puheenjohtaja.vammaisneuvosto@varkaus.fi

The Council for the Elderly comprises seven (7) members, two (2) of whom are representatives of organisations. Each member has a personal deputy. The term of office for members is the same as that of the City Executive Board.
The Senior Citizens’ Council has the right, where necessary, to consult experts and to draw up statements and proposals for the city’s various administrative departments.

The duties of the Senior Citizens’ Council:

• To monitor and influence decisions affecting the elderly population and to promote cooperation between the authorities and organisations for the elderly in Varkaus.
• To monitor how the elderly population copes with everyday activities such as housing, care needs and mobility.
• To monitor the city’s general administrative decision-making and its effectiveness and suitability from the perspective of older people.
• To promote opportunities for older people to participate in and influence public decision-making.
• To promote the ability of older people to cope with various aspects of society, such as housing, social and health services, social security, cultural and leisure activities, and other municipal services.
• Monitor the development of services, support measures and other benefits intended for older people, and, with the cooperation of the relevant administrative departments, informs organisations for older people about the development and availability of services and support measures for older people. Where necessary, the Council for the Elderly shall make proposals in this regard.
• To influence the planning and implementation of the environment so that public spaces and similar facilities are also suitable for use by older people. The suitability of facilities must take into account limitations caused by age, disability or illness, such as reduced mobility or problems with perception, hearing or vision.
• Inform older people about various benefits, services and their availability.

Email address of the Senior Citizens’ Council: vanhusneuvosto@lh.varkaus.fi