Finland's PM Sipila Offers His Home To Asylum Seekers

Finland PM Asylum — Prime Minister Juha Sipila had in a surprise statement on Thursday threatened to break up his government after only five months in power if they failed to reach an agreement Friday. Pictured: Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila arrives at the European Union (EU) Council headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, June 25, 2015. Reuters/Darren Staples

HELSINKI (Reuters) - Finland's prime minister, Juha Sipila, said on Saturday he would offer his own home to asylum seekers.

The home in Kempele, northern Finland, could house asylum seekers from the start of the year, Sipila told national broadcaster YLE, while calling all Finns to show solidarity with refugees heading to Europe to flee war and poverty.

Sipila is usually based in the capital Helsinki.

He said an EU plan to redistribute 120,000 asylum seekers arriving in Greece, Italy andHungary should be voluntary and hoped Finland could show an example in this regard.

(Reporting by Anna Ercanbrack; Editing by Alison Williams)

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