Finnish Left Leader: The Far Right Is Attacking Workers
Minja Koskela is leader of Finland’s Left Alliance. She spoke to Jacobin about how the right-wing-populist Finns Party is using its place in government to attack labor and public services, and how her party is resisting austerian dogmas.
Finland’s Left Alliance leader Minja Koskela believes it was a mistake to think the populist far right would have any solidarity toward working people. (Courtesy of Elisa Salomäki)
Left-wingers across the West often look to Nordic states for inspiration, given their historical success in building an extensive welfare model. However, these countries are politically divided, and since 2023, Finland has been ruled by a coalition of center-right and right-wing populist parties. In government, they have adopted a slash-and-burn policy toward public spending, including a recent debt brake that threatens perpetual austerity by limiting borrowing.
Minja Koskela is the leader of a quite different party: Finland’s Left Alliance. It served in Sanna Marin’s cabinet from 2019 to 2023 under then-leader Li Andersson, who went on to score a historically high vote share in the 2024 EU elections. In an interview, Koskela told Mike Watson what the Finnish experience can teach socialists internationally about fighting the Right, and how today’s American politics are seen from Finland.
Mike Watson
You became leader of the Left Alliance in April 2024, following the leadership contest held after Li Andersson stepped down. What have been your main challenges in this role — and as you see it, what have you succeeded in doing?
Minja Koskela
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