Budget shortfall may lead police to cut 450 jobs

The amount earmarked for police in the proposal of next year´s budget is under threat of a shortfall of EUR 35m-EUR 40m unless the situation is remedied in the government budget session in September, according to the National Police Board.

In terms of full-time equivalents, or the annual workload of one employee, the EUR 35m-EUR 40m savings required would mean a reduction of at least 450 full-time equivalents, said the NPB in a press release on Monday.

The Ministry of Finance on 13 August has released a proposal of EUR 63.2 billion for the budget of the year 2022 with a deficit of EUR 6.7 billion. Borrowing will decrease by EUR 7.6 billion from the sum budgeted for 2021.

The decision on spending limits in the spring failed to include the resources required by the Police to guarantee even the existing level of Police operations. Without financing, the Police will be facing adjustment measures in all Police operations and units, the authority observed.

“The budget decisions are out of line with police expectations,” said National Police Commissioner Seppo Kolehmainen, adding that this is a value judgment of whether or not the security needs to be addressed.

The National Police Board has made a start on planning activities to explore how operations would be adjusted and what the implications of these adjustment measures would be.

Personnel costs account for most of Police spending and this is why it is necessary to look at this as a whole. One option would then be to not extend temporary posts or hire new people to replace those who retire from or otherwise leave the service of the Police. This would apply to police officers and civilians alike.

“This would translate into about EUR 20m – 25m,” said Anne Aaltonen, Director of Administration, who chairs the steering group planning the adjustment measures at the National Police Board.

Aaltonen said that redundancies or temporary layoffs would be a very last resort if no other ways could be found.

Other key saving means being explored include cutting down on the premises network, critically reviewing development and centralised procurement, and in future charging for non-statutory duties carried out by the Police. Nevertheless, it is unlikely that the savings generated by these measures would materialise next year.

The actual consequences of adjustment measures would be seen in all Police operations. It is still too early to assess what the consequences would mean at the Police unit level. At the strategic level, the Police would increasingly have to focus on tackling essential and urgent threats to life and health.

The contraction of around EUR 40m would affect police visibility and response times throughout Finland, particularly in sparsely populated areas, control of public order and security, road traffic control and criminal investigations.

”I am particularly concerned about how the personnel will cope if large cuts are decided. The personnel are already overloaded because of a huge workload and changes in job requirements.” Aaltonen said.

The adjustment plan will become clear once the final level of appropriations is known after the government budget session in early September.

“I call for a debate on how valuable – or cheap – security is priced. Mere talks or promises are not enough, also concrete acts are required. We cannot afford to weaken security, but that’s where we’re heading with these decisions. How secure do we want to keep Finland? Kolehmainen asked.