Finland’s Regional State Administrative Agencies (AVI)'s decision not to follow the guidelines on public gatherings issued by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is exceptional, the ministry’s Chief of Staff Kirsi Varhila told Yle.
"At the ministry, we considered that September could have continued in the same way as August, but the regional agencies have deemed the coronavirus situation in their areas to be more serious than the ministry does nationally," Varhila said.
The confusing saga began on Monday when the agencies, who license public events, announced that gatherings should be limited to 50 people with larger events requiring special distancing measures and strict observance of hand hygiene guidelines.
The ministry then responded to the agency’s announcement, saying that this decision was based on a typo in an official document issued by the ministry and that the real figure should be 500, not 50.
However, on Wednesday, the agencies decided to stick with the original limit of 50 people and stricter conditions for events larger than that.
The agencies further clarified that events of more than 50 people were never prohibited, but rather the conditions under which they could be held were tightened. Currently, even small event organisers are advised to follow safety guidelines, but are not required to do so.
Nevertheless, the decision to keep the tightened guidelines in place is significant, because the requirement to guarantee safe distances even in small crowds may mean that event organisers cannot sell 100 tickets for a 300-seat arena.
It also makes it even more difficult, and in some cases even economically unprofitable, to organise indoor events, especially music gigs.
In this regard, Finland’s regional agencies are following guidelines that conflict with the ministry’s official instructions.
AVIs can operate independently
Varhila however said it is not a problem in itself that agencies tighten the restrictions on large gatherings, even though the ministry instructs otherwise. She explained that the regional government agencies are not bound by the ministry's instructions.
"AVIs always have the opportunity to make stricter or looser configurations for its regions. They are not under the leadership of the ministry, but independent decision-makers," she added.
AVI CEO: "We would have made a decision anyway"
Regional State Administrative Agencies CEO Marko Pukkinen told Yle that the agencies considered information from different sources, including the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), before reaching a decision.
"I think we would have made a decision anyway. The ministry’s guidelines play a major role in our assessment, but a large number of people are assessing the overall situation. Above all, THL's information on the spread of the virus affected our assessment of the situation," Pukkinen said.
Despite the confusion over the missing zero from the press release earlier in the week, Pukkinen said the agencies had decided to stick to its original position.
"We have consulted AVI's chief physicians, who work closely with hospital districts and municipalities. We believe there is no reason to change the [original] decision," Pukkinen said, adding that he does not see a big contradiction between the views of the agencies and the ministry.
"It is a difference of interpretation as to whether keeping safe distances between people is mandatory or whether it is simply following the recommendations in a sufficient way to limit the spread of the pandemic," he said.