Encouraging Finns to work and cutting the budget following the high spending of the previous Social Democratic government are issues Finnish centre-right Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said the new government will tackle.
Orpo was interviewed on Yle‘s Prime Minister’s Question Time on Sunday and was asked in particular about the country’s budget, which the controversial far-right Finance Minister of the right-wing populist True Finns party, Riika Purra, presented for the first time on Friday and in its entirety on Monday.
The budget, which includes a debt of more than €10 billion in 2024, “is the heavy legacy of the previous government,” said Orpo.
“We would have to make even bigger cuts if we wanted to balance central government finances even faster,” he added, noting that cuts in the government’s programme should not primarily target low and middle-income earners.
“Work must be worthwhile, and the system must, therefore be reorganised to encourage Finns to work,” Orpo said, adding that his goal is to find jobs for 100,000 Finns who are not in the labour force.
However, he acknowledged the difficulty of reforming the social security system and confirmed the government’s plans to cut income-related unemployment benefits.
“It should pay to work, so we are reviewing the system. But the tax breaks will target low- and middle-income earners to help them cope with everyday life,” Orpo declared.
At the same time, the government wants to raise the lower limit of the solidarity tax for high-income earners, a move which has angered the left-wing opposition.
“This is done to ensure that those who contribute to Finland’s profitability are taxed more reasonably and to keep them in Finland,” Orpo explained.
During the summer, the Orpo government was the subject of much controversy, as Purra declared that she had not even considered distancing herself from past racist remarks, causing an uproar in the opposition while the government remained silent.
On this point, Orpo clarified that he assumes the government will stay together.
“This government is option A, and there is no option B. The Social Democrats and the Centre Party have continued to target the economic policy we want to implement,” Orpo simply said.
(Charles Szumski | EURACTIV.com)
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