While Perusuomalaiset has been criticizing “squinty-eyed climate policy” for years, writes IS political editor Oli Varis, it cannot sit in a government that copies its climate policy record from the previous government.
In politics, individual numbers can have considerable symbolic value.
Now, in the government negotiations taking place in Sittalo, 2035 is becoming a symbolically important number.
Government leader Petteri Orpo (CEO) announced on Monday that Finland should become carbon neutral by then.
– It will not be cancelled, Orpo replied when asked if the 2035 target was being cancelled.
– However, so as not to increase everyday costs, Orpo said.
According to information from IS, fundamentalist Finns followed Orpo’s speeches with “Havi Auki”.
For Basic Finns, the 2035 target doesn’t work. The target should be moved to 2050, the party had already forged alliances before the elections.
Basic Finns chairman Rikka Purra declared on Tuesday morning that fixing years is a very stupid climate policy.
According to Purra, Finland has already “cut emissions by a huge amount”, and “disciplining this country is not possible”.
Purra reiterated his earlier message that carbon neutrality would not be achieved.
– You can’t do that. If we look at our sink counts, we figure it out, Purra said.
The question of numerical climate targets has been a difficult one for Orpo.
In the fall of 2021, Orpo outlined that the coalition would not join a government that begins to roll back climate measures.
Last summer, Orpo signaled that it was ready to be flexible on its climate measures in the face of the energy crisis.
In IS’s election machine, Orpo chose neither to agree nor to disagree when the statement was presented in the election machine: “Finland’s climate goal cannot be compromised, even if the economy demands it.”
Orpo has now reverted to its old position that climate targets will not be compromised.
It is possible that climate targets and climate policy in general will become the focus of government negotiations.
For basic Finns, the carbon-neutral target of 2035 is perhaps hard to swallow, as it was the most important strategic goal of the government of Antti Rini (SD) and Sanna Marini (SD).
When Perussuomalaiset has been criticizing “squinty-eyed climate policy” for years, it cannot sit in a government that copies its climate policy record from the previous government.
The Christian Democrats are unlikely to hang themselves in talks until 2035.
The chairman of the Christian Democrats, Seri Esseiah, said on Tuesday that the party is committed to a policy set at the end of the Juha Sipila (centre) government, according to which the 2040s will lead to a situation in which “greenhouse gas emissions” will increase. are clearly negative, that is, we use the sink to remove more greenhouse gases from the atmosphere than we produce”.
However, the target of 2035 is important for RKP.
RKP president Anna-Maja Henriksson pointed out that there are many stupid people in Finnish business life, if climate targets are stupid, as Purra claimed. At the same time, Henriksen indicated that the goal has also received support from the business world.
Purra said that if you want to survive till 2035 for political prestige, then you cannot do anything about it.
This could be taken to mean that Perusphenomali would be willing to live with the goal, but one interlocutor insisted that this interpretation is incorrect.
There are plenty of other pain points in government negotiations, for example immigration.
According to Purra, Basic Finns will only go to a government that cuts immigration.
– Several legislative changes and entries for humanitarian immigration. Amendments to the Aliens Act and clear legislative changes for work-based immigration, Purra announced on Tuesday.
Henriksen and Essiah, on the other hand, communicate that work-based immigration is absolutely necessary for Finland to secure the workforce. The coalition also wants to accelerate work-related immigration.
The third difficult topic relates to social and health services: the question is how to prevent spending pressure in a situation where health and social care costs are expected to rise by up to six billion euros over the next four years.
Orpo and Purra talk about making administration more efficient, but reducing costs can be difficult without operations affecting people’s daily lives.
RKP in particular is struggling with Social Security savings. According to IS information, progress has been made in Social Security, but concrete savings goals are still open.
There are also a lot of points of contention from the labor market side.
Basic Fins is willing to increase unemployment insurance related to earnings, but does not accept unemployment insurance deductions. Extending local agreements to basic Finns is also a difficult topic.
So that the atmosphere of the government talks does not seem too painful, we will probably also report on progress this week.
Finally, an agreement has been reached on the financial framework and the six billion adjustment target, but it is not much comfort when the devil is also hiding in the details of the economy.
