TV | Clear News | Friday 18.7.2025

Children’s swimming skills. Municipalities and unemployment. Blueberry damage. Weather.

Children’s swimming skills

First, a question about children’s swimming skills.

Children’s swimming skills have deteriorated.

Only half of sixth graders can swim, which is much less than 10 years ago.

Many children’s swimming skills deteriorated during the coronavirus pandemic. Swimming pools were closed at the time. Some children were unable to attend swimming lessons.

Immigrants’ swimming skills are also often poor. Sometimes no one in an immigrant family can swim.

Children’s swimming skills have deteriorated.

There is a campaign underway in Finland to improve swimming skills. The goal is for 10,000 children to learn to swim.

Municipalities and unemployment

Then the news about unemployment.

Unemployment is more expensive for municipalities than before.

If unemployment continues for a long time, the municipality must pay money to Kela. Municipalities replace part of the benefits paid to the unemployed with money.

Municipal payments became more expensive at the beginning of the year.

Municipalities paid over 100 million euros more in unemployment benefits in the first half of the year than a year ago.

Unemployment is more expensive for municipalities than before.

However, the municipality can pay less if it provides people with work more quickly.

Blueberry blight

Finally, a word about berries.

Part of the blueberry crop has been destroyed.

Blueberries have been affected by a disease in some places that is destroying the plant. The disease is caused by a fungus called blueberry spotting.

The disease causes brown spots on the blueberries and no berries grow.

However, the disease is not dangerous to humans.

Part of the blueberry crop has been destroyed.

Damage has been found at least in Southwest Finland, Pirkanmaa and South Ostrobothnia.

Saturday weather

Still a weather forecast.

On Saturday the weather will be sunny, meaning it won’t rain.

The sun shines all over the country.

The temperature is 19-33 degrees, which means it is not hot. The heat can be oppressive.