Last November, the government announced that a billion euros is to be cut from municipal spending. However, plans for the ways and means to make those savings have been moving ahead slowly.
"Ministries are used to building, not dismantling," says Jukka Pekkarinen, Director General at the Ministry of Finance.
Spending cuts have to be made to prevent local government financial sustainability gaps from becoming any worse. However, Jukka Pekkarinen, who coordinates state finances, is unwilling to say whether or not he believes the needed savings can be found.
"It's not a matter of belief. The government is committed to this and it is a matter of the credibility of the whole government," notes Pekkarinen. "It will happen one way or another."
If the government intends to stay on target, a billion euros in savings measures need to be sorted out at the end of March. The biggest cuts in local government spending are to come from providing the elderly with care at home or in assisted living rather than in institutions, a reduction in secondary education facilities, and lower professional requirements for who can do some jobs.
Public Administration and Local Government Minister Henna Virkkunen is pressing for progress from the ministries involved. She says that next month's budget review by the cabinet needs to calculate the staying power of local government finances for the next four years and preparations for spending cuts will have to be far enough along by then in order to do so.