1980s

NBED stabilized its position and rendered its operations more effective

At the beginning of the 1980s the concept of critical emergency supply systems was adopted. That meant that constantly scarce resources must be radically concentrated to objectives of primary importance. This concept was supplemented by defining critical materials and materials susceptible of shortages in an emergency situation. Imported materials constituted most of them. In the planning agency’s meeting in September 1982 the concept of basic emergency supply was introduced.

The concept of basic emergency supply meant that securing the population’s livelihood requires production and administration to function on a certain basic level under all circumstances. The basic emergency supply systems were to define this basic level of operations and to establish connections between the various measures needed to guarantee coherent operations. Thus, a production chain was to be formed. A definition of the commodities concerned and their minimum levels to be secured under all circumstances was to indicate how well the system works and what are the essential needs.

The State Granary was required to maintain security stocks of 900 000 tons of grain

The first step on the road to security stockpiling was the State Granary Act from December 1980. That Act imposed on the State Granary the obligation to maintain security stocks of 900 000 tons of grain. NBED considered such an amount to be necessary.

The Act on Compulsory Emergency Stockpiling of Drugs was adopted in 1984.

A national doctrine concerning security of supply emerged and crystallized

It was necessary to combine all ideas and initiated projects and to form a clear, coherent and usable security of supply doctrine. On 19th February 1985 the National Defence Council made a decision to define general objectives for security of supply. The Council made a proposal that the Ministry of Trade and Industry and NBED initiate measures to that effect. On 6th May 1985 the Ministry established a Working Group for Preparing General Security of Supply Objectives under the chairmanship of professor C E Carlson.

On 27th June 1986 the Working Group presented its report. It was based on extensive investigations and on studies of NBED’s operations and of the state of security of supply. The report stated that the fundamental objective of material security of supply is to safeguard the citizens’ basic livelihood under all circumstances and at all times.

In terms of developing security of supply the Working Group proposed full security of supply as the objective. However, the Working Group suggested that the Council of State establish 70 % of that level as an intermediate objective, i.e. the level already achieved in respect of energy supply.

In respect of the National Board of Economic Defence the Working Group proposed that ”the Board’s position shall be strengthened so that it is capable, as one single entity, in its capacity of special agency subordinated to the Ministry of Trade and Industry, to assume more responsibility for measures in order to improve material security of supply”.

The Minister’s request to enterprises to appoint Provision for Emergency Directors

In 1988 measures were taken to implement emergency planning and preparations in individual work places. Minister Pertti Salolainen, who was responsible for security of supply matters, sent a request to those enterprises and work places that were most important for basic security of supply to appoint Provision for Emergency Directors. Close co-operation was thus established between the most important enterprises and the pool concerned.