Immigration is a qualitative rather than a quantitative question

Speaker of the Finnish parliament Jussi Halla-aho said that immigration is a qualitative rather than a quantitative question.

Talking to the Daily Finland in an exclusive interview at his office recently, the veteran right-wing politician focused on various national, European and global issues, including the situation of the Finnish economy, Greenland and Ukraine.

“In other words, what is essential is the quality not the amount of immigration,” said the Speaker in reply to a query on whether government moves to tighten immigration would negatively affect demographics when the birth rate is lower than the death rate.

The former chair of the Perussuomalaiset (Finns Party), the second-largest component of the four-party alliance government, also said that immigrants, particularly those with Middle Eastern and African backgrounds, were not integrating into Finnish society and were becoming a burden on the state and creating problems in society.

He also expressed concern about the country’s poor economic condition and the government’s huge debt.

“The Finnish economy is struggling amid a huge deficit. There has been no significant growth in the past 20 years,” said the Speaker, adding that the government had to take out a large amount of loans to maintain costs, including the welfare system, and is now paying about €2 billion a year in interest alone.

He, however, appreciated the steps taken by the right-wing government to narrow the gap by tightening social benefits and immigration and easing the labour market.

He also termed the climate target of 2035 ambitious and unrealistic.

Speaking on the contemporary global situation after changes in US policies, Halla-aho said the shift had become a challenge for the European Union as US President Donald Trump is much less predictable.

“We need to adapt to the change. We need to talk with like-minded partners in Europe,” he said, adding that European unity is essential and the Western and Southern member states must contribute more to the common defense and support to Ukraine.

He was also unwilling to make predictions about the future of Ukraine but said Finland could not afford a Russian victory in the war.

“I do not like to make predictions. We should define clearly what we want to happen. We need repeated discussions for better results, as we cannot afford a Russian victory,” he said.

As for Greenland, Halla-aho said that it was difficult to judge how serious Trump was about the issue.

“He does not always mean what he says. We should take it easy and not react seriously to his every remark,” he said.

In reply to another query, he ruled out any possibility of a future alliance among Europe, Russia and China in the changed global situation.

“China is a systemic threat while Russia is an authoritarian threat,” said the Speaker, adding that profitable business cooperation with China is still needed. He also said Europe needs to reduce its dependency on America.