Supreme Administrative Court backs Ähtäri council’s committee removals

Finland’s Supreme Administrative Court has upheld the Ähtäri city council’s decision to remove the chairpersons of its audit committee, Yle reports. The council was entitled to act because of a loss of confidence.

The council decided in autumn 2024 to remove the committee’s chairpersons. An administrative court later overturned the decision, but the Supreme Administrative Court has now set aside that ruling.

The council’s decision will remain in force. The Supreme Administrative Court ruled that the council could remove the committee’s chairpersons without dismissing the entire committee.

The ruling was not unanimous.

Dispute over company names

The case arose after two Finns Party councillors registered in their own names company names used by Ähtäri Events, a company partly owned by the city.

The councillors, Jarkko Salo and Juha Nortunen, said the registrations were intended to keep the companies in the municipality. The city council considered the matter an abuse of their positions of trust.

A temporary committee was established to resolve the issue. Salo was subsequently removed as vice-chair of the audit committee and from the committee’s membership.

The audit committee was not re-elected as a whole. Only two members were appointed to replace those who had been removed. The city board, where Nortunen served, was instead re-elected in its entirety.

Salo appealed to the Vaasa Administrative Court, arguing that all the audit committee members should have been re-elected at the same time.