Criminals' welfare days numbered?
Deputy National Police Commissioner Robin Lardot said Tuesday that his previous statements about criminals potentially forfeiting their right to social aid were not intended to challenge Finnish social policy.
Lardot told Yle on Sunday that criminals could lose their social benefit entitlement. But on Tuesday he said in an Yle Radio 1 interview that he was not seeking to overhaul social policy.
“The matter at hand was the various grants that organisations apply for—the issuing authority needs sufficient information about the applicant,” Lardot said, aiming to clarify his earlier statement. “The point I raised was that we need better cooperation between the authorities in combating organised crime. When administrative officials are handling permits, should they know about links to organised crime?”
Organised crime has increased in Finland during the past decade, according to the Deputy National Police Commissioner. He estimates that there are about 80 such groupings in the country.
Their activities are mostly related to drug smuggling or the black market.
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