Minister of Finance Riikka Purra (PS) attended a plenary session in the Parliament House in Helsinki on 6 September 2024. Purra has expressed her disappointment with the conclusions drawn by a parliamentary task force appointed to examine the budget of YLE, the public broadcasting company in Finland. (Antti Aimo-Koivisto – Lehtikuva)
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MINISTER of Finance Riikka Purra (PS) has voiced her disappointment with the outcome of parliamentary negotiations over the funding of YLE, the public broadcasting company of Finland.
On Thursday, the parliamentary task force proposed that the index used to adjust the funding annually be frozen for 2025–2027 and that the value-added tax on the company be raised from 10 to 14 per cent in 2026.
The proposals would have an impact of 66 million euros on the funding in 2027, representing over 10 per cent of the budget of YLE in 2024. The Finns Party has earlier proposed slashing the funding by around 25 per cent, equivalent to almost 150 million euros.
Merja Ylä-Anttila, the CEO at YLE, told Helsingin Sanomat that the decision will necessitate consultative negotiations and service reductions at the public broadcasting company but declined to speculate about their targeting.
“I hope that we can make the kind of sensible decisions that we lose nothing of the end product. If we lose something, hopefully we’ll get something in its place,” she said. “My view is that the employer should find savings across the board, not only among the personnel.”
Purra said on YLE’s Ykkösaamu on Saturday that the Finns Party is opposed to all parliamentary parties weighing in on the decision.
“It can’t be that one tax-funded entity, whose budget has increased significantly, […] isn’t taking part in these very modest savings,” she said, clarifying that her stance is unrelated to criticism of journalism in general – a territory that is certainly not unfamiliar for the ruling populist right-wing party.
“It’s also a question of principles. One entity not saving at all, that isn’t even reasonable.”
If the parliamentary task force had failed to reach an agreement, a decision on the funding would have been taken by the government.
YLE on Thursday announced Arabic and Somali-language news will be added to its service offering, drawing questions from the Finns Party.
While Purra said she is surprised that the public broadcasting company is in a position to expand its service offering amid economic challenges, Jani Mäkelä, the chairperson of the Finns Party Parliamentary Group, likened the announcement to “giving the middle finger”.
“It’s a bit perplexing how there’s money and re
Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi
