EHYT's corrective package for the government’s mid-term review: four observations on Prime Minister Orpo’s substance use and gambling policy

02.04.2025 - Prime Minister Petteri Orpo’s government will hold its mid-term review in April 2025. From the perspective of preventive substance work, the government’s mid-term balance sheet is far from flattering. There is an urgent need for a corrective package for substance use and gambling policy.

During the government’s term, the availability of substances has been increased while the conditions for preventive substance work have been weakened. There are plans to cut €130 million from organizations responsible for promoting health and well-being by 2027.

According to EHYT (Ehkäisevä päihdetyö EHYT ry), substance use and gambling policy must be based on scientific evidence and long-term prevention, not on the commercial interests of businesses that sell substances, at the expense of public finances and citizens’ health. Alcohol costs society billions of euros and worsens the funding gap of wellbeing services counties.

Substances account for over one-third of all avoidable years of life lost prematurely in Finland. According to the latest cause of death statistics from Statistics Finland, deaths due to alcohol and drugs have increased, reflecting a rise in substance-related marginalization. Registry data shows that 89,000 children in Finland live before reaching adulthood in families where at least one parent has a serious substance abuse problem.

According to the 2025 Alcohol policy opinions survey, 71 percent of Finns support the current alcohol policy or even stricter measures:

• 54 percent consider the current policy appropriate, while 17 percent would like to see it tightened.

• Well under half of the population supports selling wine in grocery stores, and this share has decreased by 12 percentage points since 2022.

• Only 14 percent of Finns believe that strong alcoholic beverages should also be sold in grocery stores.

1. A comprehensive assessment of alcohol policy is needed

The government has pursued inconsistent and fragmented alcohol policy without assessing its overall impact. Stronger alcoholic beverages have been brought into grocery stores, and home delivery of alcohol is being proposed.

Contrary to the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO), the current monopoly system for alcohol sales is being dismantled – a development that is dangerous from a public health perspective.

EHYT’s proposed corrective measures:

• Alcohol availability must not be increased – promoting the sale of wine in grocery stores should no longer continue, as it would increase consumption and harm at the population level. Expanding wine sales cannot be done without simultaneously addressing the sale locations of strong alcoholic beverages. Alcohol policy must continue to be guided by social and health policy considerations.

• The plan to enable home delivery of alcohol should be abandoned. Instead, strengthened support measures should be directed toward children living in families where at least one parent has a serious substance abuse issue. These more than 89,000 invisible children need a safer environment to grow up in – not more alcohol in their homes.

• An independent overall assessment must be conducted on the alcohol law changes made by the government. It is contradictory to promise in the government programme to preserve the monopoly system that limits the number of sales outlets, while simultaneously making decisions that put the entire system on a slippery slope.

2. Investment in prevention must not remain just campaign rhetoric

Drug experimentation has increased, which raises the need for substance education based on research, early identification, and directing people to support services. Before the elections, most candidates from government parties stated that the government should invest in preventive work during its term.

EHYT’s proposed corrective measures:

• The reform of funding for NGOs must take into account the proposal from the STEA advisory board to develop a comprehensive funding model. Organizations conducting grassroots preventive work must be included in further planning.

• €10 million must be immediately allocated to implement the national action plan for preventive substance work. Funding should focus on the prevention of harm caused by alcohol, nicotine products, drugs, and gambling. Additional funding is needed for both community and individual-level substance education across all age groups.

• Organizations must be guaranteed sufficient core funding and earmarked project funding, for example, to prevent youth nicotine use and gambling harms, as well as to reduce adult alcohol consumption.

• Strengthening parenting skills must be supported to improve family wellbeing and protect children from substance-related harm in a preventive manner.

• If the proposed tax-deductibility of donations for youth, sports, and certain children’s organizations is implemented, it is essential that the same benefit be extended to all social and health organizations.

3. Harm taxes have been used, but more increases are possible

The government has raised alcohol and tobacco taxes and extended tax responsibility to alcohol products ordered from abroad. However, harm taxes could be used to improve state finances even more. Currently, beer tax has been reduced and tax increases have not been applied evenly across all product categories. Taxes on new nicotine products have also not been raised to the same level as for tobacco.

EHYT’s proposed corrective measures:

• The government must initiate a study on earmarking harm taxes directly for harm prevention. In 2023, alcohol tax revenue was €1.463 billion, tobacco tax revenue €1.156 billion, and gambling revenue €625 million. Together, these total €3.24 billion. At least 2 percent of collected harm taxes and revenues should be earmarked for substance and gambling harm prevention in line with international models to match the real level of need.

• The beer tax reduction must be reversed, as it undermines the goals of preventive substance work and contradicts public health recommendations.

• The taxation of nicotine pouches must be increased to curb their growing use, especially among youth. The nicotine limit for pouches should be reduced to 4 milligrams, flavorings should be banned, and the purchase age for tobacco and nicotine products should be raised to 20 years.

4. Gambling harm prevention must be part of the gambling reform

The government is proposing a new gambling law that would open online gambling to international competition and significantly increase marketing and sponsorship. The reform is set to take effect on 1 January 2027.

The proposal does not meet its own stated purpose or the government programme’s goal of preventing and reducing the health, economic, and social harms caused by gambling.

Research clearly shows that the proposal will increase gambling harm at a time when such harm is already rising. EHYT is particularly concerned about the gambling-related harm experienced by young adults, the growing burden on wellbeing services counties, and the shrinking resources of NGOs.

EHYT’s proposed corrective measures:

• In line with the opinion of the Chancellor of Justice, the new gambling system must earmark a share of gambling operators’ profits for the prevention and reduction of gambling harms.

• Gambling marketing must be strictly limited in various environments, and outdoor advertising should be banned. The volume and tone of marketing directly affect the level of harm, and young adults in particular are more susceptible to the influence of marketing.

• The gambling law must include shared consumption limits for all licensed operators. Company-specific limits are not enough to prevent harm or over-indebtedness. Special measures must be introduced to protect 18–24-year-olds. Age-specific, lower consumption limits used in other countries should also be introduced in Finland.

• Slot machines must be removed from their current decentralized locations and placed in supervised venues such as arcades. All gambling bonuses must be banned, and effective measures must be introduced to block unlicensed gambling services, such as payment blocks.

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Source: EHYT ry