Library employees and concerns were astir in the spring when the next government programme's upcoming policies were released. An appendix to the programme states that a new law will enable municipalities to organise library services as they see fit, which has raised questions of the future of Finnish libraries.
Jukka Relander, politician and chair of the Finnish Library Association says that the amendment would put services in small areas at great risk.
"This is a policy that is sure to affect libraries in small municipalities the most," Relander says. "The programme reform may tempt small areas to gain savings by discontinuing their library services."
Other interpretations of the programme's policy abound, too. The Ministry of Education and Culture is trying to quell worries over library shutdowns.
"I wouldn't worry about the functionality of normal library work and availability," ministry chief Riitta Kaivosoja says. "The library institution is one of our most conspicuous and central public services and it must remain as such in the future, too."
Relander rebuffs Kaivosoja by saying that if there is nothing to fear, then announcements like the one in the government programme are unwarranted.
Regional union doubts
The Association of Local and Regional Authorities also questions the need for the programme's library policy. The current library law actually already grants municipalities nearly free rein over how library services are brought to the people, as in-house deals or co-operative initiatives.
"We've been a little confused by the new guideline and how it even affects current legislation," the association's library expert Johanna Selkee says.
The Finnish Library Association has sent in an official statement this summer in favour of preserving the current library system. A separate group of specialists is working on the new library law.
"We will continue to renew library-related legislation. Our work aims to maintain a law that defines the basic needs and goals of library services in municipalities," Selkee says.
Library services amount to some 1 percent of municipal spending.