Finland’s PM Sanna Marin is the world’s youngest prime minister, aged 34 (Picture: EPA)

Finland’s new Prime Minister once suggested a four-day working week, it has emerged.

Sanna Marin, 34, said an extra day off and shorter work days would allow the public to spend more time with their families and on hobbies.

Her suggestion was made when she was Transport Minister during a panel discussion at an event to mark her party’s 120-year anniversary last August.

But it gained traction again yesterday and saw many people seriously consider a move to Scandinavia.


Sadly, the Finnish Government has now said that no official plans exist for now.

In a tweet, they wrote: ‘In the Finnish Government´s programme there is no mention about 4-day week. Issue is not on the Finnish Government’s agenda.



‘PM @marinsanna envisioned idea briefly in a panel discussion last August while she was the Minister of Transport, and there hasn’t been any recent activity.’

Key figures in Finland’s government, including Ms Marin (centre) and education minister Li Andersson (left) (Picture: Markku Ulander/REX)

Ms Marin is the world’s youngest sitting prime minister and heads a five-party coalition of groups all led by women.

Most Fins currently work for around eight hours a day, five days a week.

A few companies in neighbouring Sweden have been experimenting with a six-hour working day since 2015.

Early results suggest it increases productivity, well-being and wealth but it is expensive and is unlikely to become widespread right now.

Speaking at the event in the city of Turku last August, Ms Marin said: ‘A four day working week, six hour working day – why can’t that be the next step?

‘Is eight hours the final reality? In my opinion people deserve more time with their families, their close ones, with their hobbies and other things in their life.

‘This could be the next step for us in working life,’ she said while listing things she hoped for in the future.

In the UK, Labour promised to implement a four-day working week ‘with no loss of wages’ within 10 years if it won December’s General Election.

The defeated party also planned to cut the average working week to 32 hours.

However, Boris Johnson’s governing Conservative party is against the idea.

Got a story for Metro.co.uk? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page.