MP Timo Vornanen was ejected from the Finns Party's parliamentary group after a meeting of the party leadership on Thursday afternoon.
In a press conference announcing the decision, chair of the parliamentary group, Jani Mäkelä, said the decision to expel Vornanen was unanimous.
He said that the decision was due to a lack of confidence in the first-term MP, following his suspected involvement in a shooting incident outside a karaoke bar in downtown Helsinki last week.
"Trust is essential in politics, and you either have it or you don't. This is how we have come to this decision," Mäkelä said, adding that Vornanen's "behaviour cannot be defended or considered acceptable".
Leader Riikka Purra said the party would discuss Vornanen's membership in the Finns Party (as distinct from the parliamentary group consisting of Finns Party MPs) at a later date.
Police in the capital have launched an investigation into the incident under the suspected charges of causing serious danger to the life or health of another person, illegally threatening another person, as well as a firearms offence.
The writing had been on the wall for the police officer-turned-MP after Purra told tabloid newspaper Ilta-Sanomat earlier this week that she had lost confidence in Vornanen.
A number of prominent Finns Party politicians also used the occasion of their May Day speeches on Wednesday to criticise Vornanen's behaviour, with Interior Minister Mari Rantanen referring to his reported actions as "idiotic".
Vornanen apologises
Immediately after the Finns Party's press conference, Vornanen issued his own statement in which he apologised to the Finns Party, members of parliament and the entire parliamentary institution — but stated his intention to continue as an MP.
"I will establish my own parliamentary group and continue as an MP. In the absence of a court decision, I consider that there is no legal basis for my resignation or removal from parliament," he said.
Article updated at 16:02 on 5.2.2024 with comments by Jani Mäkelä and Riikka Purra.
