Attitudes towards nuclear power have been the most important stimulant and dividing factor in the Finnish energy debate for a long time. It is the clearest issue in the realignment of the front lines in energy policy and stands behind all opinions one way or another. In practice, the other energy options and their pros and cons, as well as the development of the entire electricity generation system, are always assessed in relation to the nuclear power alternative. This deliberation took the form of an open antithesis in the Finnish Parliament's decision on nuclear power in 2002, with votes in favor 107-92, and the debate leading up to it.

2.1. Further construction of nuclear power plants

The survey has followed the general attitudes but also specifically the attitudes towards further construction of nuclear power plants. The question asked in the form of the statement 'It is worthwhile to build the fifth nuclear power plant in Finland' has been included in all surveys since 1984. The long duration of this energy policy trench warfare is evident in the fact that this question has kept its relevance for more than twenty years. When the question was first drawn up, it was not thought that it would still be topical in the new millennium. This question will become outdated only when the fifth nuclear power plant is completed.

The number of people in favor of the fifth nuclear power plant is now considerably greater (43%) than the number of people rejecting it (35%). The current distribution is slightly more reserved than the year before (46% / 32%), but it is still close to the level of the four previous years. The results for the preceding years mentioned above represented the most sympathetic attitude towards nuclear power in the entire follow-up period and a clear differentiation from the previous sceptical attitude that held for a considerable time. The only larger shift in the time series occurred in 1986 when the Chernobyl accident resulted in a collapse in the rising positive attitudes towards nuclear power in Finland. No single survey before 2003 showed a distribution indicating greater support for acceptance than for rejection. The last four results clearly deviate from the general trend of the time series [Figure 3].

This is also illustrated in the differences in percentages of those who support and those who oppose the further construction of nuclear power plants. The present value +8 (which means that there are 8 percentage points more people in favor than against) clearly deviates from the results in 1984-2002, as was the case with the four previous surveys. The decrease from the last survey (at which time the value was +14) is probably due to a general abatement of the support of nuclear power and also the fact that the concrete evaluation object, the construction of the fifth nuclear plant in Olkiluoto of Eurajoki, has been delayed. The adversities faced by the construction project have been recurrently discussed in the media [Figure 4].