Valtioneuvos

Valtioneuvos (Swedish: statsråd, "Counselor of State") is a Finnish title of honor awarded by the President of Finland to elder statesmen. It is one of two titles (the other being vuorineuvos) in the highest class of Finnish honors.

The title has been awarded eight times in independent Finland since 1917:

• Juho Kusti Paasikivi — Senator, Prime Minister, later President (1930)
• Emil Nestor Setälä — Senator, Professor (1934)
• Eero Yrjö Pehkonen — Senator, Provincial Governor (1948)
• Karl-August Fagerholm — Prime Minister, Speaker of Parliament (1969)
• Martti Miettunen — Provincial Governor, Prime Minister (1977)
• Johannes Virolainen — Prime Minister, Speaker of Parliament (1989)
• Harri Holkeri — Bank of Finland Chairman, Prime Minister (1998)
• Riitta Uosukainen — Minister of Education, Speaker of Parliament (2004)

Social Democratic former Prime Ministers Rafael Paasio, Kalevi Sorsa and Paavo Lipponen all declined the honor when it was offered to them. Lipponen commented that no one outside Finland knows what valtioneuvos is, and that he is satisfied with "former Prime Minister".