Background information

As part of prime minister Petteri Orpo’s governments’ austerity measures, the allocated funds for municipalities’ climate action plans are revoked as of the 2024 fiscal year. In relation to this, the statutory requirement as per the Climate Act 423/2022 [Ilmastolaki] for municipalities to formulate such a plan have also been removed.

The government aims with the amendment to reduce the administrative burden of municipalities. In the government proposal it is stated the vast majority of cities with over 50,000 citizens already have climate action plans, and that the role of cities in climate mitigation is of higher significance than that of smaller municipalities.

The amended act entered into force on 1 January 2025.

Content of measure

In the Climate Act 423/2022 [Ilmastolaki], Finland has pledged to be climate neutral by 2035. The Act entered into force in 2022 and to speed up the transition to a climate neutral society, and amendment to the Act was passed in 2023. This amendment required that municipalities formulate their individual climate action plans latest by the council period of 2025-2029. The amendment to the Act also required municipalities to update their individual plan at least once during every new council period.

National funds allocated to the municipalities to formulate and monitor their individual climate plans amounted to €2,831 000 in the General Government Fiscal Plan for 2023-2026.

Use of measure

In mainland Finland, more than 85 municipalities out of 293 have adopted their own climate action plan

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Does not apply to workers	Does not apply to businesses	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government	No special funding required

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Consulted	Consulted
Form	Direct consultation outside a formal body	Direct consultation outside a formal body

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• No involvement
• Main level of involvement: Sectoral or branch level

Involvement

The government proposal has undergone a consultation round

Views and reactions

The Trade Union for the Public and Welfare Sectors JHL states in their consultation response that it is unfortunate that the government has decided to remove the obligation for municipalities to formulate climate action plans. Even if JHL recognises that larger municipalities and cities have a higher climate impact, the obligation would drive for smaller municipalities to also gather institutional knowledge which would support a sustainable transition.

The service sector employers’ organisation Palta has also in their statement objected to the removal of the obligation, arguing that there are synergies between the climate action plans and fiscal balance the government is aiming for. Palta argues that many energy efficiency efforts in municipalities that the climate action plans would have resulted in will now not be realised

Sectors and occupations

This case is not occupation-specific.

Sources

• 05 July 2024: Draft government proposal to Parliament for an amendment to the Climate Act Reference number of the request for comments: VN/28405/202 (www.lausuntopalvelu.fi)
• 28 July 2025: Government proposal to Parliament for an act amending the Climate Act [Hallituksen esitys eduskunnalle laiksi ilmastolain muuttamisesta] (www.eduskunta.fi)