Combining equal and accessible services with tough austerity targets is not easy

The reform of the social welfare and healthcare system is one of the most important reforms of Prime Minister Juha Sipilä's government. As a municipal politician, I wonder whether the reform has taken into account the very different conditions of the regions to implement the objectives of the reform, such as freedom of choice. The above is very crucial for the success of the whole reform, but especially for the equality of people. Improving equality of access to services was one of the original major objectives of the reform.

The Constitutional Committee of the Parliament has also raised questions. They have asked for clarification on how the constitutionally required national equality and adequate safeguarding of services will be ensured in the social welfare model proposed by the government. The government's proposal contains some programmes, recommendations and strategies to guarantee the safeguarding of services, but the overall picture of the monitoring of equality has remained unclear. In particular, there is a need for explicit legal supervision of the implementation of equality at national level.

In particular, the overall approach to the control mechanisms for monitoring the equitable provision of services within and between counties needs further illumination. Furthermore, it is not clear from the draft law on freedom of choice what happens if problems occur, i.e. what are the correction mechanisms?

The Government has recognised that accessibility of services will continue to vary within regions. Sparsely populated areas would be less likely to have additional provision to improve accessibility. High targets and responsibilities have been set for provincial public utilities. The draft Freedom of Choice Bill states that "the county enterprises should in all circumstances ensure adequate services for people in different parts of the county". Experts have pointed out that ensuring access to and a uniform level of services across the province may increase the costs of the province, for example through harmonisation of compensation for services and staff salaries.

I will be interested to see how the government manages to combine equal and accessible services with the big savings targets of the social services reform.

Bella Forsgrén

The author is a member of the Jyväskylä City Council and the Green Party Executive Committee.