Haveri surprised by doubling of welfare areas in Finland’s social reform

Arto Haveri, a professor of administrative sciences at Tampere University, expressed his surprise upon discovering that the number of welfare areas had doubled from the original proposal by experts in 2015. Haveri was part of a working group led by the current Chancellor of Justice, Tuomas Pöysti, which was tasked with examining the social and healthcare reform, self-governing areas, and regional administrative reform. A critical question addressed was the appropriate number of these welfare areas.

Pöysti’s group concluded that between 9 to 12 regions were needed. However, political dynamics intervened, as the debate over welfare areas also involved competition for regional power among parties. The National Coalition Party suggested five regions, while the Centre Party aimed for a much larger number, with the final count reaching 18 and subsequently increased to 21 by the next government led by the Social Democratic Party.

Haveri articulated concerns during legislative preparations, indicating that there were too many welfare areas. He noted that starting with fewer regions, around 9 to 12, would have likely facilitated a more sustainable structure. He recalled that in 2014, during the initial drafting of the law, an arrangement for just five regions was proposed, which would have allowed for stronger resource allocation and more effective service delivery.

Former Minister Juha Rehula, involved in the initial preparations, highlighted the need for ongoing development of the current welfare area model, acknowledging significant continuing costs for social and healthcare services. He urged for a period of stability for the welfare areas to improve their operations and manage costs effectively.