Obstacles and Opportunities for Transformative Social Policy in the Nordic Welfare State – Lessons Learned from Finland

The paper investigates how social security policies could be utilised as transformative social policy in response climate crisis in the Nordic welfare state. Western welfare states should be reorganised in such a way that they significantly reduce their impact on biodiversity while still ensuring the conditions for the well-being of citizens, both now and in the future.

The Government Programme of Antti Rinne and later Sanna Marin’s (2019-2023) set the ambitious goal of making Finland the first carbon neutral welfare society by 2035. Additionally, it established a parliamentary committee (2020-2027) to reform the social security system. We interpret the carbon neutrality target as an opportunity to convert social security policy into transformative social policy. Our interest lies in the question: How was social security reform utilised as support for transformative social policy? What were the obstacles and opportunities for transformative policies that have arisen in this process?

Our empirical research material includes policy documents like the government programme and documents from the parliamentary social security committee’s first period (2020-2023). Using content analyses carried by Atlas.ti, we identify both the opportunities and obstacles for transformative social policy in the process of aiming to achieve the carbon neutrality. We then discuss how social security reform has been leveraged to support transformative policies and whether it could have been utilised better.

According to preliminary analyses, the parliamentary committee has the potential to reach a consensus on this complicated matter. However, much greater attention should be paid to implementation. The current social atmosphere is not conducive to the long-term decision-making, likely required for transformation. In the current polarising political environment, the differences of opinion have deepened. In Finland, which contrasts sharply with the previous, traditionally consensus-seeking political culture.