Students at high schools across Finland walked out of classes at 12:15pm on Thursday in protest against the government’s plans to make cuts to education.
The event was organised by the union representing high school students in response to the government’s budget cuts, announced last week.
In its budget for the 2025-2028 fiscal years, the administration led by Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) has proposed cutting funding for vocational education by some 100 million euros, ending the right of students to obtain free study materials once they turn 18, and placing students on a separate — and less generous — system of housing benefit support.
High school students in Turku brought their protest to the city centre.
“Many young people are now wondering whether they have enough money to begin high school. Young people may also be forced to work to pay for their education,” Olivia Pietilä, a second-year student at a high school in Kokkola, told Yle.
Pietilä further noted that more and more young people are choosing to complete their high school studies over a longer period of time, for example up to four years.
“They would be hit very hard, and it is unfair and miserable,” she added.
Thursday’s walkout has been mostly organised via social media, with the union calling on students to use their feet to make their voices heard. Students at an estimated 140 high schools across the country joined the protest.
“I’m optimistic that it will [make a difference]. If we do nothing, then nothing will change,” chair of a student council in Vaasa, Nuutti Kypärä, told Yle.
Source:Yle
