Between Centralized Leadership and Diffusion of Responsibility: The Finnish Government Responds to COVID-19 Crisis

Analysing the response of the Finnish government to the COVID-19 crisis, this paper shows that in terms of organisation and communication the strategy combined elements of centralized leadership, ministerial dominance, and scientific expertise. After an initial seemingly passive phase, the government adopted an uncertainty avoidance approach in mid-March 2020, declaring the state of emergency and imposing strict anti-pandemic measures. The first wave of the pandemic was characterized by a sense of national urgency both in terms of policy and public opinion, which appreciated the active leadership of PM Sanna Marin. As the epidemic waned over the summer, the government shifted to a more decentralized pandemic governance under normal legislation, with targeted regional solutions favoured instead of nation-wide measures. This produced occasional confusion and tensions between regional and local authorities and the government. As the number of deaths remained low, criticism of the government was largely absent but increased towards the end of 2020. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health retained most of the actual decision-making, and horizontal coordination created challenges. In terms of communication, the leading experts from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare as well as key civil servants appeared regularly in the media, thus raising questions about leadership and the roles of elected office-holders vis-à-vis bureaucrats.