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sanna marin, Source: Government of Finland

Finland announces extra post-corona budget increase for municipalities

Finland announces extra post-corona budget increase for municipalities

The goal for the funding is to help Finland get back on its feet in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic

Earlier this week the Finnish government, led by Prime Minister Sanna Marin, announced a landmark supplemental budget for the purpose of helping the country get back on its feet in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic.

The lockdown of cities and the effective stop of public life across the country has led to significant economic damages and Finnish authorities are eager to quickly go about resolving them. And that is precisely the reason why they have decided on bringing out the big guns in terms of public spending.

A record-breaking initiative

The supplemental budget announced by the Finnish government amounts to a total of 5.5 billion euros – a large part of which (some 1.4 billion) will go directly towards the country’s municipalities. The investment, however, came with a warning. Finland is set to borrow an additional 18.8 billion euros this year in order to be able to finance its initiatives and authorities expect that spending cuts and tax hikes are more than likely in the coming years in order to stabilize the country’s finances.

The funding meant to be used by Finnish municipalities will be vital for the country’s economic recovery. Nearly half of the budget will be used to provide and improve basic services that are essential to the lives of citizens, some 200 million will go towards education and a further 300 million will be used for climate action, which remains an important government priority, despite the unprecedented times.

Public transport is also not being left out. Some 755 million euros will be provided by the government for the development of transportation with over 600 million of that being spent on rail and tram. Public transport operators who have been suffering reduced revenues over the last few months will be compensated with 100 million euros, while 18 million will be allocated for the promotion of walking and cycling.

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