Government decides on General Government Fiscal Plan for 2025–2028

The General Government Fiscal Plan covers central government, wellbeing services counties, municipalities, and statutory earnings-related pension funds and other social security funds.

The Government decided on the General Government Fiscal Plan on Thursday 25 April. The purpose of the plan is to support decision-making on general government finances and to support the achievement of set goals. The General Government Fiscal Plan and the Stability Programme included in it have been drafted in accordance with EU and domestic fiscal policy legislation. 

The goal of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo’s Government is to stabilise the general government debt-to-GDP ratio and put it on a permanent declining track after this parliamentary term. The Government is committed to keeping the general government deficit under 3.5 per cent of GDP this year.

The Government Programme includes measures to strengthen public finances totalling EUR 6 billion. On 16 April, the Government agreed on new measures to strengthen public finances totalling about EUR 3 billion. This will bring the general government deficit below 3 per cent of GDP next year.

General Government Fiscal Plan includes spending limits decision

The plan estimates that next year’s on-budget activities will comprise

• revenues of EUR 76.9 billion excluding net borrowing (EUR 75.1 billion this year, including the first supplementary budget)
• expenditures of EUR 87.6 billion (88.1 billion)
• a deficit of EUR 10.7 billion (12.9 billion).

The plan includes a decision on spending limits for general government finances. Ministries must prepare their budget proposals in line with the decisions made in the General Government Fiscal Plan.

The plan is based on the latest independent economic forecast produced by the Economics Department at the Ministry of Finance.

Finland to submit Stability Programme and National Reform Programme to EU

The General Government Fiscal Plan includes Finland’s Stability Programme, and it meets the EU’s requirement for a medium-term fiscal plan. At the same time, the Government approved Finland’s National Reform Programme.

The Stability Programme and National Reform Programme relate to the European Semester for economic policy coordination, and Finland will submit them to the EU. Finland will prepare its first fiscal-structural plan under new EU legislation next autumn.

Materials of government spending limits discussion published

The Ministry of Finance also published the materials it had provided to the members of parliament and special advisers of the ministers of the parties in Government before the spending limits discussion. A group led by Matias Marttinen prepared the Government’s framework for the spending limits discussion.

Inquiries:
Mika Niemelä, Director General of the Budget Department, tel. +358 295 530 525, mika.niemela(at)gov.fi
Jussi Lindgren, Special Adviser to the Minister of Finance, tel. +358 50 576 4611, jussi.lindgren(at)gov.fi
Marketta Henriksson, Head of Secretariat for EU Affairs (Finland’s Stability Programme), tel. +358 295 530 441, marketta.henriksson(at)gov.fi
Susanna Ikonen, Senior Ministerial Adviser, (Finland’s National Reform Programme), tel. +358 295 530 049, susanna.ikonen(at)gov.fi