Government needs to speed up
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By Janne Virkkunen
The second government of Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen has reached the age of six months. The government has been able to enjoy the benefits of positive economic development, which it has not managed to influence much itself.
Finland’s economic growth remains well on course, but there are warning signs in the air. Pay deals that are higher than usual are being made in the present round of bargaining by individual unions, and the rise in prices is picking up speed. Increased inflation is swallowing up a large part of the pay hikes, and rising taxes and fees are taking care of the rest.
The country’s government appears to be strangely helpless in the face of this development. Many had expected new political initiatives from the centre-right government, but were disappointed. The government postponed tax policy reforms - in practice, with the exception of inheritance taxation - to the end of the electoral term, instead of cutting the marginal tax as an incentive for people to work.
The surplus in the state finances is being used to pay off the state debt. This year EUR 2.7 billion of the debt will be paid off. At the end of the year, the debt will total EUR 56 billion, which is 31.5 per cent of GDP, which is very little on a European scale.
The entry of the National Coalition Party into the government has led to high-profile activities in the direction of Washington, but no big changes have been seen yet in foreign and security policy. The government’s EU policy appears to be unchanged. Party chairman Jyrki Katainen, in his capacity as the Minister of Finance, is following policy lines set by the Ministry of Finance.
The conflict in health care appears to be a big problem for the government. Defending the hard line has been left to the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, while many ministers want to understand the demands of nursing personnel. Social Services Minister Paula Risikko (Nat. Coalition Party) said as much out loud.
Minister of Labour Tarja Cronberg (Green) took a quite unnecessary stand on the resignation procedure, as did President Tarja Halonen. No wonder the nurses and other health care personnel feel that they can get more from the state as the mediation progresses.
The newspaper Suomenmaa, the main mouthpiece of the other main government party, the Centre, wrote a lead editorial on Thursday pondering the looming labour conflict in health care. Suomenmaa mentioned a recent opinion survey, which showed a decline of support for the National Coalition Party, and an increase for the Centre.
The conclusion that Suomenmaa drew was interesting. The paper noted that governments have tended to remain in power the full four-year electoral term, but for some reason it chose to remind readers of the possibility of the dissolution of the government. Reasons for this could include internal disagreements within the government and lack of trust. Suomenmaa wrote that it hoped that the government could retain the support of the parliamentary groups of the parties in it. The more difficult moments it lives through, the tighter this support needs to be, the paper concluded.
In the Friday issue of Suomenmaa, veteran Centre Party politician, Deputy Speaker of Parliament Seppo Kääriäinen calls on the Centre to raise its own political profile. Kääriäinen sees the Centre and the National Coalition Party as being in very close competition with the Social Democrats for status as the largest party, and that the opportunity should not be lost.
It is clear that there are desires within the Centre Party to put some speed into the government. Kääriäinen speaks about an ecological straight flush for the Centre, which could significantly influence the ecological development of society. The Centre has quite weighty portfolios in this area, while the National Coalition Party dominates the key positions of foreign policy.
Naturally, four-year government term cannot be an end in itself, but in practice governments have sat through the entire electoral term since 1983. The same old rule applies to Vanhanen’s second government, that reforms need to be made while times are good, while at the same time taking on political risks without fear of how voters react.
The Prime Minister’s style of running the government also tends to strengthen the image of the government as being passive. The aim is to get things ready within the government, and only later to make them public. This naturally allows the government to work in peace, but political debate begins only after the decisions are ready.
In Sweden, the four-party centre-right government of Fredrik Reinfeldt has taken a political risk and promoted the reforms that it has promised. This has reduced the combined support that the parties have in opinion polls, and has especially increased the popularity of the Social Democrats. However, the four parties led by Reinfeldt have time until the autumn of 2010 before the next Parliamentary elections.
Vanhanen’s government, if it sits for four years, has until early 2011 - that is, another three and a half years. Passive administrative work is the biggest possible mistake that a government can make.
The government should step up its work for reform without dodging political risks. The first real political measurement will not come until the municipal elections in October next year.
Helsingin Sanomat / First published in print 21.10.2007
The writer is the Editor-in-Chief of Helsingin Sanomat
JANNE VIRKKUNEN / Helsingin Sanomat
janne.virkkunen@hs.fi
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| 23.10.2007 - THIS WEEK |
 Government needs to speed up |
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