I entered politics because I wanted to introduce change in Helsinki. I contemplated my candidacy in the parliamentary elections for a long time. Did it make any sense? Shouldn’t I be spending more time with my children? Would it be better to concentrate on my work? Or maybe I should start something new altogether? Good government needs people representing young families to weigh in on important policy decisions – people who are living the day-to-day life of a family with young children. My next move was clear to me; I became a candidate for Finnish Parliament.
LIFE SHOULD BE ABOUT BOTH WORK AND LEISURE
The people of Finland have an increasing tendency to construct their lives around their work. Small children are too often left alone. Too many committed people are working themselves to the bone and becoming ill; some break their back, others sacrifice their mental health. Finland has to shake our “on/off” working culture, where people either work obsessively or not at all. Work-related injuries or illnesses or a history of unemployment keep too many bright people from contributing to our society. Let’s make part-time work a viable option!
OVERHAUL SERVICE FUNDING
Even as Finland leads the world in education levels, health discrepancies among our population groups grow wider. Funding for health care and elderly services in Finland and its administration must be restructured. No one has a grasp of the big picture right now; funding is splintered among several different sources to an extent unheard of in other EU countries. We must find the courage to streamline and make sense of the system before services become hopelessly unbalanced.
PUT AN END TO IMPOVERRISHMENT
Impoverishment and inequality are not inevitable; they can be prevented with tax relief for those with smaller salaries and by improving the level of basic social benefits. Equable income distribution increases general confidence. What’s more, research shows that people living in egalitarian societies are happier.
A CONSCIENTIOUS FINLAND
Finland’s economy has been built by its resilient people, but the ideas and skills of immigrants have played an integral part. Finland needs immigrants; for this reason we need less bureaucracy when it comes to securing work permits for foreigners. There is no doubt that Finns are competent, but we can’t do it all alone. After the wars, our destitute country was able to develop under the protection of closed markets. The less developed countries of the world today are in contrast required to compete on the open market. Finland must assume the role of an active and advising international partner, one that can be trusted to deliver on its promises. We must join together to build a more peaceful and equitable world.
