Skip to content
Media
Valtioneuvosto frontpage

Competitiveness Pact signed

statsrådets kommunikationsavdelning
Publication date 14.6.2016 17.53
Press release 256/2016

On Tuesday, 14 June, social partners signed the Competitiveness Pact at Kesäranta, the Prime Minister’s Official Residence. In the Government’s view, the pact will contribute to achieving a target of 110,00 new jobs during the parliamentary term.

“I am very pleased that the Competitiveness Pact has now been signed. My only concern now is whether the coverage of the pact will exceed 90 per cent. In this process, it was worth aiming high, even though it took time,” says Prime Minister Juha Sipilä.

The Government has promised to support the pact, if it achieves sufficient coverage and is put into effect. According to Sipilä, the Government will keep its promise and implement the following measures:

  1. The Government will not proceed with a government proposal for measures to strengthen cost-competitiveness.
  2. The Government will not implement the conditional list of additional savings and tax increases set out in Annex 2 of the Government Programme.

In addition, the Government has promised to introduce tax concessions on earned income, under the following conditions:

  • If the Competitiveness Pact achieves sufficient coverage and is put into effect, the Government will introduce tax concessions on earned income amounting to EUR 315 million in the 2017 Budget. The Ministry of Finance estimates that this would be sufficient to compensate for the 2017 impact on taxpayers of the increase in charges agreed in the Competitiveness Pact.
  • If the coverage of the Competitiveness Pact is greater than 85 per cent, the amount of the tax concessions will be increased by EUR 100 million, to a total of EUR 415 million.

“I can confirm that the coverage is greater than 85 per cent. Furthermore, coverage in excess of 90 per cent is still possible, in which case further tax concessions amounting to EUR 100 million will be made, bringing the total to EUR 515 million,” says Sipilä.

Inquiries: Markus Lahtinen, Special Adviser to the Prime Minister (Economic Affairs), tel. +358 295 160 404

Jari Lindström Juha Sipilä Olli Rehn Petteri Orpo regeringen
 
Back to top