Government proposes a bill on Situation Centre activities

On 21 December, the Government presented a legislative proposal to Parliament for an act regulating the activities of the Government Situation Centre. The proposed bill would set out provisions on the Government’s Situation Centre, its key activities and right of access to information. The act is intended to guarantee access to information by the President of the Republic and the Government in security matters while at the same time improving inter-agency exchange of information and facilitating the formation of a reliable situation picture. The act is scheduled to enter into force on 1 July 2017.

From the point of view of strategic-political decision-making, it is vital for the senior government to be able for formulate a shared inter-administrative situation picture on a timely basis. The objective of the legislative proposal is to ensure a smooth flow of information in accordance with the Government resolution on overall security to guarantee that the Government Situation Centre and the relevant ministries have access to pertinent information and that the authorities are obligated to make active efforts to provide the Government with the information required for the anticipation and management of ongoing developments. The goal is for pertinent information to be forwarded to senior government and other relevant parties quickly and efficiently using secure channels.

A further objective of the proposal is to clarify the exchange of information between ministries and the Government Situation Centre and eliminate obstacles to communications between the competent authorities and the Centre.

At the same time, the Government proposal would improve preparedness for new security threats, such as hybrid threats, as a comprehensive nationwide situation picture would make it possible to receive advance warning of impending hybrid threats.

The need for an ability to formulate a forward-looking situation picture is underlined in the realm of foreign and security policy in preparing for terrorist acts, international conflicts and hybrid threats. The proposal seeks to improve the capabilities for creating a clear situation picture by allowing the Government Situation Centre, in collaboration with the appropriate ministries, to coordinate the information gathered from various sources, including ‘weak signals’.

A further objective is to ensure that – in case of extensive and prolonged accident conditions or serious crises – the various authorities have a shared and comprehensive idea of the events and efficient methods and appropriate systems in place for the exchange, coordination, analysis of the situation data and preparation of the necessary predictive scenarios. Operational activities would continue to be coordinated by the competent authorities at the same administrative level at which operational activities are otherwise directed.

The Government Situation Centre, operating on a 24/7 basis, was established in September 2007 to ensure access to information by the senior government and authorities. Over the past few years, major efforts have been made to develop the Government’s situation awareness activities based on the committee report ‘Preparedness and overall security’ and the Government resolution on overall security.

As part of the development efforts, the Government presented a legislative proposal (HE 259/2014) to Parliament for an act on situation awareness activities that defined the key duties of the Government Situation Centre, its right of access to information and the authorities’ obligations to provide information. The legislative process was aborted on 21 April 2015 on expiry of the parliamentary term.

Inquiries: Jari Ylitalo, Director of Government Security, tel. +358 (0)295 160 100, Prime Minister’s Office