Helsinki paid consultancy €17,000 to plan study trip

Helsinki paid a consultancy €17,000 to organise a study trip to Vienna, a cost that surprised Deputy Mayor Paavo Arhinmäki, Yle reports.

The city’s boards have undertaken 11 study trips since 2024, costing nearly €360,000 in total. The most expensive was a February trip to Vienna at €52,000, followed by a €37,000 trip to Milan last autumn.

Arhinmäki, who joined the Milan trip, defends the practice, citing three benefits: fostering cross-party cooperation within boards, gathering inspiration from other European cities, and promoting Helsinki abroad. He highlighted Base Milano, a former industrial building repurposed for culture, as an example of ideas worth adopting.

City Councillor Alma Tuuva, who attended the Vienna trip, said the tightly scheduled visit included tours of local elderly care, addiction services, and child protection facilities. She noted Vienna’s drug testing service as a potential model for reducing overdose deaths in Helsinki.

Arhinmäki acknowledged that public procurement rules inflate costs, as flights and hotels must be purchased through designated providers. The Vienna trip’s arrangements involved a consultancy fee of €17,000, a detail that caught both Arhinmäki and Tuuva off guard.