Why a Finnish millionaire was fined 54,000 euros for speeding

A Finnish multimillionaire who argues that rich people are discriminated against has threatened to emigrate after he was fined 54,024 euros (£39,000) for a speeding offence.

Reima Kuisla was driving 64mph in a 50mph zone in his Mercedes-Benz when he was pulled over by police and handed the large fine.

In Finland, traffic fines operate on a scale based on the offender's last declared income, with higher earners facing much harsher fines. Kuisla's last tax record showed he earned 6.5 million euros (£4.8m) in 2013.

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Erkki Wuoma, a former advisor at the Ministry of Interior, once described the fine system as "a Nordic tradition", according to the Washington Post. "We have progressive taxation and progressive punishments. So the more you earn, the more you pay."

Kuisla took to Facebook to criticise the system. "Ten years ago I wouldn't have believed that I would seriously consider moving abroad," he said. "Finland is impossible to live in for certain kinds of people who have high incomes and wealth."

The businessman and race horse enthusiast is a vocal critic of Finland's tax system and argues that the laws discriminate against the rich.

"Finland needs hardworking and greedy entrepreneurs," he said according to the Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat. "I will admit I'm greedy. Few would admit it, but this is how society works. It makes no sense that success and determination are punished [in Finland]."

Some ordinary Finns, however, were unsympathetic. "Stop complaining. You were the one driving," said one commenter on the Finnish news website Iltalehti. "Small fines don't deter the rich – fines have to 'bite' everyone the same way, " said another.

Kuisla isn't the first high profile Finn to receive a hefty fine. Teemu Selänne, a Finnish ice hockey hero, was fined the equivalent of 39,000 euros for reckless driving in 2000, while a Nokia boss was fined 116,000 euros for speeding on his Harley Davidson motorbike in 2002.