A poll conducted for Yle suggests a majority of Finns are opposed to any cuts in pensions, as the government eyes spending cuts and tax rises to fill a hole in the 2025 state budget.
Nearly 60 percent of respondents were of the opinion that spending cuts should not affect pensions.
Some 32 percent said they would cut pensions, while one in five respondents did not offer a view one way or the other.
Women were more likely to oppose pension cuts than men, with some 66 percent of women opposed to pension cuts. The equivalent figure for men was around half.
Pollsters asked 1,098 residents of mainland Finland for their opinions on 19-20.3.2024. The margin of error is +-3 percentage points.
Respondents were not asked about different types of pension cuts, which could range from outright cuts in the value of pensions to freezing the index used to uprate pensions, which would ensure a fall in their real value.
The issue of pension cuts is part of the political debate this spring, as the government seeks billions of euros in additional cuts to next year's state budget.
Finance Minister Riikka Purra (Finns) has already said that pensions might not be excluded from austerity measures, as they have been so far as the government seeks to balance the budget.
Professors more supportive
Professors of economics and social policy asked by Yle were more supportive of cuts in pension spending than the population at large, if the government is seeking billions of euros in spending cuts.
"At least it must be understood that there will be more tax rises or other cuts if the pension system cannot be touched in any way," said Niku Määttänen from the University of Helsinki.
"In this situation there should be no single socio-economic group that is excluded in advance from any scrutiny," said Juho Saari, a professor of social and health policy at Tampere University-
Neither academic took a stance on whether or not pensions should be cut, but both said that pensions represent such a big chunk of public spending that they should at least be considered for cuts.
Määttänen suggestedone option could be restricting pension accrual that currently comes from periods of unemployment, or when a student graduates.
He also noted that some kind of balance could be found by reducing the index raises due to pensions, which are linked to consumer prices.
Saari, on the other hand, would consider increasing taxes on pensions. That way any pain could be focused on those with larger incomes, and poorer pensioners might be protected.
Pensioners' union: Pensioners already hit by cuts
The Finnish Pensioners' Federation says that it is unfortunate that different age groups face this kind of comparison.
"It is wrong to claim that the cuts already implemented have not touched pensioners," said Irene Vuorisalo of the federation.
Vuorisalo cites an index freeze on housing benefit, and increased charges for medical appointments, as well as reduced subsidies for prescribed medicines have all hit pensioners.
A freeze in the pension index would force more pensioners into poverty, according to Vuorisalo.
"Most Finns' pensions are not large," said Vuorisalo. "And the smaller a pension is, the larger proportion goes on unavoidable expenses: food, housing, medicines and healthcare."
The Finnish Centre for Pensions says that the median pension last year was 1,736 euros before tax. That means half of pensions received less than that, and half received more. A quarter of pensioners got a monthly payment worth less than 1,250 euros.
On the other hand, the average pensioners' income is relatively good, and poverty is not more common among pensioners than among other groups.
Vuorsalo warns, however, that the elderly don't have the same ability to cut living costs as younger generations.
"The pension is what it is until the end," said Vuorisalo. When you're in working life you have the opportunity to negotiate pay rises or seek additional income, and there are still years for you to improve your earnings."
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