Ombudsman for Children Elina Pekkarinen has called for Finland's current system of social assistance to be scrapped.
"All social assistance should be abolished. In its place, a more flexible, humane and less humiliating social assistance system should be considered," Pekkarinen said, adding that the current system is "ruthless".
Social assistance refers to the last-resort form of financial aid handed out by benefits agency Kela, which a person can apply for if their income or other benefits are not sufficient to cover their necessary living expenses. The amount provided depends on a number of factors.
The ombudsman's comments come in the wake of a report by Yle on Wednesday, which revealed that even a relatively small amount of money in a child's bank account can determine how much social assistance a family receives.
According to Kela's internal guidelines seen by Yle, sums as low as 100-200 euros would be enough to impact the level of support an entire family is entitled to.
Kela spokesperson Marja-Leena Valkonen told Yle that the agency takes into account all of a family's disposable income and assets when calculating the amount of social assistance to be provided. This also applies to money in a child's account, even if it is relatively little, which Valkonen said is as per Finnish law.
"The law does not distinguish between the assets of parents and children. For this reason, the examination of the child's assets is also part of the calculation of social assistance," she said.
Ombudsman for Children Elina Pekkarinen also noted the current model prevents low-income families on income support from putting any money aside.
"Poor families should also have the opportunity to save for a better future for their child," she said, adding that the government's current policies are driving "more and more people into social assistance".
"We should work in exactly the opposite direction in society. We should ensure that as few people as possible have to rely on social assistance," Pekkarinen said.
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