May Day political speeches: centre-left government praised and criticised
Opposition faults government for poor handling of economy
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In the traditional May Day speeches by Finnish political figures, representatives of the Social Democratic Party, one of the two main parties in the centre-left coalition, praised the record of the year-old government. Speakers of the political opposition, meanwhile, felt that the government should be ashamed of its poor record on employment.
The day’s speeches at events in different parts of the country also touched upon the challenges of globalisation, foreign policy, and incomes policy.
There were few truly original ideas.
Social Democratic Party leader, Speaker of Parliament Paavo Lipponen, praised the EU policy of Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen (Centre).
"There is a strong continuity in Finland’s EU policy. The Centre Party’s arrival in the government has been good for both the country and the Centre Party itself", Lipponen said.
Turning to security policy, he said that the EU alone is not a sufficient security anchor for Finland: in his view, Finland also needs to cooperate with NATO.
Minister of Finance Antti Kalliomäki (SDP) also praised the cooperation that has taken place in the present government as "mainly positive".
Kalliomäki added that if the cooperation continues to proceed well under the present difficult situation, and if the "slide to the right" of the opposition National Coalition Party and the "extremist line of the Left Alliance" gain strength, the possibilities of continuing the present model of cooperation will grow stronger in the long term.
Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja (SDP) said in his speech that the views within the Finnish leadership on foreign policy are unified, and that the "stability is not shaken by the constant sniping by a small minority of malcontents, targeting in turn the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, and the Minister for Foreign Affairs".
Opposition Left Alliance chairwoman Suvi-Anne Siimes expressed concern about the interests of Finnish labour in light of the enlargement of the EU.
"For some reason, the Prime Minister has also said that record-low taxation is a permissible and justified competitive advantage for Estonia. I feel ashamed, Mr. Prime Minister", Siimes said.
There was criticism from the National Coalition Party on the government’s employment policy. The party’s deputy chairman Jyrki Katainen asked if a special official needs to be appointed to consider ways of improving employment, as was done when Martti Ahtisaari was President.
Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen said in his May Day speech that the government is not naive with respect to the problems brought on by EU enlargement. He also said that it is in Finland’s "own interest to have a positive attitude toward immigration".
"There will be no mass-migration from the new member states. For this reason everyone should be prepared for the transition period [before free movement of labour takes effect] to end in a year".
Lauri Ihalainen, chairman of the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions (SAK), warned employers not to ruin the chances for a comprehensive incomes agreement through extreme statements. He said that no agreement will be possible in the autumn without fair treatment of low-income fields.
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 3.5.2004 - TODAY |
 May Day political speeches: centre-left government praised and criticised |
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