Finnish Local Government Barometer 2010: Members of Municipal Councils

The survey charted the attitudes of members of municipal councils towards local government finance and municipal service provision in Finland. Views on the characteristics and policies of Finnish political parties were also studied. First, views were probed on the sufficiency of municipal service provision in different issues, for instance, care for the elderly, health services, public transport, sports facilities, library and cultural services, primary and lower secondary schools. The respondents were presented with a list of services and asked which could be cut down if municipalities had to reduce costs. The services mentioned included, for instance, educational institutions, child day care, care for the elderly, social assistance, health care, sports facilities, public transport. They were also presented with a list of social problems, such as rising prices, prostitution, racism, crime, income disparity, high taxation, and asked which were the three problems the future parliament and government should focus on. Next, the respondents were asked to what extent they agreed with a number of attitudinal statements relating to the financing of services, cutting down services, democracy, economic and social disparity, minimum income guarantee, public political influence, raising the municipal tax rate etc. Some questions focused on what methods the respondents would find acceptable to ensure the financing and services of municipalities. The methods mentioned included, for instance, raising the municipal tax rate, increasing borrowing, cutting/delaying investments, decreasing the quality of municipal services, lowering wages. Finally, opinions on the characteristics and policies of different political parties were charted. Background variables included the number of inhabitants in the municipality, the respondent's gender and political allegiance, and the regional council in the area of which the municipality was located.

本调查描绘了芬兰市政委员会成员对地方政府财政及市政服务提供的观点。研究亦涉及芬兰政党的特性和政策。首先，调查者探讨了在诸如老年护理、医疗服务、公共交通、体育设施、图书馆和文化服务、小学及初中教育等不同问题上市政服务提供的充足性观点。受访者被展示了一份服务清单，并被询问在市政必须削减成本的情况下哪些服务可以被削减。所提及的服务包括教育机构、儿童日托、老年护理、社会援助、医疗保健、体育设施、公共交通等。他们还被展示了一份社会问题清单，如物价上涨、卖淫、种族主义、犯罪、收入不平等、高税收等，并被询问未来议会和政府应着重关注的三个问题。接下来，受访者被询问他们对一系列与服务融资、削减服务、民主、经济和社会不平等、最低收入保障、公共政治影响力、提高市政税率等态度陈述的认同程度。一些问题集中在受访者认为可接受的确保市政融资和服务的哪些方法上。所提及的方法包括提高市政税率、增加借贷、削减/推迟投资、降低市政服务质量、降低工资等。最后，对不同政党的特性和政策进行了意见调查。背景变量包括市政的居民数量、受访者的性别和政治倾向，以及市政所在地区的区域议会。