Fri, 25 Sep, 2015 02:32:48 AM About 500 refugees arrive daily FTimes Report, Sep 25 The military watches as migrants from Iraq and Somalia were taken to Finland's new registration centre on September 22, 2015, swiftly put up in a former school building, in the northern border town of Tornio, on the Swedish-Finnish border where all migrants arriving to the border through Sweden are now required to register. File Photo AFP-LEHTIKUVA. The Immigration Service is making preparations to open new reception facilities across the country, said an official press release.
New reception places are scheduled to be available in Turku, Ylihärmä, Seinäjoki, Lahti and Kemijärvi on Thursday and at least in Lieksa and Vantaa on Friday to meet the demand of huge number of refugees arriving every day.
About 500 asylum seekers have arrived in Finland every day during the week.
More premises are needed especially in Eastern Finland, where there are very few reception centres.
The rent and other costs incurred in running reception centres are paid by the State.
Asylum Centre. File Photo Lehtikuva. The Ministry of the Interior and the Immigration Service are responsible for the reception of migrants.
The Immigration Service may transfer the responsibility for the practical operation of reception centres to municipalities, companies or other organisations.
At the moment, most reception centres in Finland are run by municipalities or the Finnish Red Cross.
However, there are no obstacles for private care service providers, for example, to run reception centres.
In that case, they would receive from the State the same compensation as the Red Cross.
Companies have also shown an interest in the activity, and the first business-run centres have been opened in Espoo and Vantaa.
The registration centre in Tornio is up and running and the Finnish authorities have now managed to halt the uncontrolled flow of asylum seekers from Northern Finland to other parts of the country.
File Photo Lehtikuva. All those registered in Tornio have been provided with accommodation.
Päivi Nerg, Permanent Secretary to the Interior Ministry, has appealed to municipalities to find more premises for the reception of asylum seekers.
According to the Finnish Immigration Service, there are suitable premises available in municipalities, but the authorities have not been able to take them into use quickly enough to meet the increased demand for reception places.
If municipalities do not provide suitable reception facilities voluntarily, they may be ordered to do so by government decree.
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