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N O R D I C S TAT E S
MAY 2010
NORDIC STATES - CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ......................................................................... 3 CANADA and
the WORLD
B A C K G R O U N D E R
Volume 75, No. 6 ...........MAY 2010
NUMBERS—A variety of statistics comparing the Nordic countries with
PUBLISHER............Rupert J. Taylor
Canada ................................................................................................... 4 EDITORS…....Rupert J. Taylor,
Linda E. Taylor
THE NORDIC MODEL—The basic set-up of the Nordic welfare Canada and the World
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state depends on tax-financed public provision of a large number of social ser- Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 6J7
vices. These include child care, basic and advanced education, hospital care E-Mail: canworld@sympatico.ca
and health services, and care for the elderly. The core of the Nordic model is Published: Sept., Oct., Dec.,
Jan., Mar., May
that everyone has access to these programs .................................................. 8
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CANADA, A NORDIC COUNTRY?—Canada and the Nordic Indexed in the Canadian Periodical Index
Indexed in the Canadian Magazine
countries are moving further apart on social policy .................................... 16 Index by Micromedia Ltd.
Back files of Canada and the World are
POLITICS—After some early hostilities, the Nordic countries have set- available in microform from: Micromedia
Ltd., 20 Victoria St., Toronto, Ont., M5C
tled into political harmony ...................................................................... 20 2N8
Published by R/L Taylor Publishing
ECONOMICS—Classic economic theory says the Nordic way of run- Consultants Limited.
ning economies should not work; yet it does .............................................. 24 Copyright© 2010 R/L Taylor Publishing
Consultants Limited.
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2
NORDIC STATES - INTRODUCTION
The First Nordics
T
he Saami people live
across the northern
cap of Europe. They
have been there for
upwards of 2,500 years and may
be descended from an earlier cul-
ture that lived along northwest-
ern Europe’s coastline 8,000 to
10,000 years ago. Their ancestral
homeland stretches across north-
ern Norway, Sweden, Finland,
and into Russia.
As with Canada’s Indigenous
People, the Saami lived off the
land by fishing and hunting.
Later, they learned to herd the The indigenous Saami people of Northern Scandinavia used to live in tipi-
reindeer that supported their way like tents called lavvo, frames of which are seen here outside Tromsø, Norway.
of life. They were entirely self
sufficient and required nothing that anyone who wanted access their own parliaments in Nor-
from outside their communities. to land in the region in which way, Sweden, and Finland, al-
However, the outside came they lived had to speak Norwe- though they have few powers.
into their lives anyway. In the gian. However, the Saami enjoy spe-
19th and 20th centuries, pressure The other Nordic countries cial rights in all Nordic regions
built on the Saami culture. There were not so blatant in their at- In general, the Saami have
were resources, such as hydro- tempts to destroy the Saami, but fared better than Canadian In-
electric potential, minerals, and assimilation nevertheless weak- digenous People. Apart from the
forests that the southerners ened their cultural identity. This few who still live on the land,
wanted. mixing with southerners makes it they have integrated into Scandi-
For the first 40 years of the difficult to give an accurate num- navian society. As everyculture.com
20th century, Norway went to ber of how many Saami there are puts it “it is more common to
great lengths to stamp out the today; estimates range between see a Saami driving a Volvo than
Saami way of life by insisting 30,000 and 135,000, with about to see one herding reindeer.”
half of them in Norway.There
FACT FILE
are now only 2,800 who carry on
Saami are sometimes Website
the traditional reindeer-herding
called Lapps, but that is a
way of life. Saami Council - http://www.
name imposed on them by
A more enlightened view of saamicouncil.net/?
outsiders and is now con-
sidered offensive.
the Saami began to take hold half deptid=1116
a century ago. Today, they have
3
NORDIC STATES – NUMBERS
Number Crunching
T
he UN’s Hu-
man Develop- Best Place to Live: World rankings
ment Report Jane’s
ranks countries
UN Develop- Quality of Information Happy
according to health, in-
ment Report Life Index Services Planet Index
come, and social condi-
tions. Iceland’s high rank- 2009 2010 2008 2009
ing will probably change in Denmark 16th 16th 12th 105th
2010 when the collapse of
its economy is factored in. Finland 12th 18th 29th 59th
International Living is a
magazine that focuses on Iceland 3rd 48th 16th 94th
travel, lifestyles, invest-
ment, etc. Every January it Norway 1st 12th 20th 88th
publishes a “Quality of
Life Index” that is created Sweden 7th 30th 2nd 53rd
by measuring such ele-
ments as cost of living, cli- Canada 4th 9th 23rd 89th
mate, crime rates, freedom,
culture, and leisure.
Jane’s Information Services is a U.K.-based company that specializes in gathering data on defence sys-
tems and conflicts. In 2008 it published an index of the 50 best countries from the standpoint of stability
and prosperity.
The Happy Planet Index (HPI) was created by the New Economics Foundation to combine human
well being and environmental impact; it has little to do with wealth and more to do with life satisfaction.
Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, and Jamaica fill the first three places.
Government
Denmark Finland Iceland Norway1 Sweden Canada
Debt as % of GDP 38.5% 41.4% 95.1% 60.2% 43.2% 72.3%
Current budget
5.5% 2.2% 18.0% 0% 3.4% 3.5%
deficit as % of GDP
Corruption2 9.5 9.6 9.7 8.9 9.2 8.4
Percentage of par-
liamentary seats 38% 37% 35% 36% 43% 21%
held by women
1Norway is able to balance its current budget by dipping into its oil and gas royalty fund. Canada has no such
fund.
2Perception of corruption by business people and analysts; 10 means completely clean and 0 means totally
corrupt.
Sources: U.S. Dept. of State, national governments, Transparency International, Inter-Parliamentary Union
4
NORDIC STATES - NUMBERS
Health Statistics
Denmark Finland Iceland Norway Sweden Canada
Life expectancy 78.3 78.9 80.7 79.9 80.9 81.2
Obesity rate 9.5% 14.9% 20.1% 9.0% 10.2% 15.4%
Tobacco use
25.0% 20.6% 19.4% 22.0% 14.5% 18.4%
daily smokers
Alcohol
12.1 10.5 7.5 6.6 6.9 8.1
litres per capita
Suicide
9.9 16.7 11.4 10.8 11.3 10.2
rate per 100,000
Sources: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, CIA Factbook
Environment
Denmark Finland Iceland Norway Sweden Canada
Ecological footprint1 9.88 ha 8.45 ha 6.02 ha 6.13 ha 7.53 ha 7.66 ha
Environmental per-
69.2 74.7 93.5 81.1 86.0 66.4
formance ranking2
World rank in
Environmental 32nd 12th 1st 5th 4th 46th
performance
1The Ecological Footprint data is created by the environment group Redefining Progress; it measures resource
consumption and waste output compared to the renewable capacity of Nature. It is quoted in the number of
hectares (ha) of Earth’s land surface occupied by each person’s impact on the planet. According to Redefining
Progress, the planet can sustain an individual footprint of 1.89 hectares; when an individual’s footprint exceeds
that size their use of resources is unsustainable.
2The 2010 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) ranks 163 countries on 25 environmental policies, where a
score of 100 is the best possible.
Big Mac Index: The cost of the iconic burger 1 The collapse of the Icelandic
in $U.S. at exchange rates in January 2009 economy prompted McDon-
ald’s to close all three of its
Denmark Finland Iceland Norway Sweden Canada outlets because its food be-
came too expensive.
$5.07 n.a. $6.361 $5.79 $4.58 $3.36 Source: The Economist
5
NORDIC STATES - NUMBERS
The Economies
Denmark Finland Iceland Norway Sweden Canada
GDP per capita $36,200 $34,900 $39,800 $59,300 $36,800 $38,400
GDP per capita
$13,415 $10,770 n.a. $10,230 $13,495 $13,640
(1973)
Growth rate 2009 -4.3% -7.6% -6.3% -1.1% -4.6% -2.4%
Inflation 2009 1.3% 0% 12% 2.3% -0.5% 0.2%
Labour product-
-2.4% -0.3% 1.3% -1.3% -1.8% -0.6%
ivity growth
R&D spending as
2.4% 3.5% 2.8% 1.5% 3.8% 1.9%
% of GDP
Sources: OECD, CIA Factbook, economist Angus Maddison
Crime War and Peace
Total number Prison Military Global
Murders per
of crimes per population per spending as Peace In-
100,000
1,0001 100,000 % of GDP dex 20071
Denmark 0.8 92.8 77
Denmark 1.3% Third
Finland 2.8 101.5 75
Finland 2.0% Sixth
Iceland 1 n.a. 40
Not
Iceland 0
ranked
Norway 0.8 71.9 66
Norway 1.9% First
Sweden 2.4 n.a. 82
Canada 1.9 75.5 107 Sweden 1.5% Seventh
1This item is included to illustrate the difficulties with statistics.
On the face of it Finland appears to have ten times more crimes Canada 1.2% Eighth
than Venezuela (9.3 per 1,000 people). The reality is that the fig-
ures show that Finns have a better police force than Venezuelans 1 Produced by The Economist and ranking
and are therefore far more likely to report crimes. countries most at peace and striving for
Sources: International Centre for Policy Studies, United Nations peace
Development Program, United Nations Survey of Crime Sources: CIA Factbook, The Economist
6
NORDIC STATES - NUMBERS
Personal Economics
Denmark Finland Iceland Norway Sweden Canada
Unemployment
4.3% 8.5% 9.4% 3.2% 9.3% 8.5%
rate
Poverty1 2.1% 2.8% 4.2% 3.5% 2.5% 7.0%
Distribution of
24 26 25 28 23 32
family income2
Social spending
28.5% 23% na 26% 32.% 18.5%
as % of GDP
Taxation
48.9% 43.6% 41.4% 43.4% 48.2% 33.3%
as % of GDP3
1Defined as having an income 40% below national median.
2Thisindex measures the degree of inequality in the distribution of family income in a country. The lower the
number the smaller the gap between rich and poor.
3Corporate and personal taxes combined.
Sources: OECD, CIA Factbook, The Economist
Global Warming Government Spending
Per capita Cut needed Interna-
Climate Education Health
emissions to reach tional aid
change as % of as % of
of CO2 in global av- as % of
world rank GDP GDP GDP
tonnes erage
Denmark 9.2 55.7% 116th Denmark 8.3% 8.3% 0.80
Finland 12.2 65.3% 115th Finland 6.4% 7.2% 0.39%
Iceland 7.5 n.a. 1st Iceland 7.6% 9.5% na.
Norway 7.9 48.9% 47th Norway 7.2% 8.4% 0.89%
Sweden 5.1 21.5% 11th Sweden 7.1% 8.2% 1.03%
Canada 17.4 73.7% 141st Canada 5.2% 8.8% 0.30%
Sources: International Energy Agency, Environmental Sources: CIA Factbook, OECD
Performance Index
7
NORDIC STATES - THE NORDIC MODEL
People First
The basic set-up of the Nordic welfare state depends on tax-financed public provision
of a large number of social services. These include child care, basic and advanced education,
hospital care and health services, and care for the elderly. The core of the
Nordic model is that everyone has access to these programs
V
arious studies have ♦ a lot of public and/or private in the world. The World Eco-
shown that Nordic spending on investment in hu- nomic Forum ranked them in the
countries “succeed man capital, including child care top six nations out of 131 for
better than other and education as well as research 2007-2008. They also get top
countries in combining eco- and development (R&D); and, marks for innovation in a 2007
nomic efficiency and growth ♦ a set of worker protections study by the German Institute
with a peaceful labour market, a that include strong labour unions for Economic Research.
fair distribution of income, and and employer associations, sig- The economic theory that
social cohesion. The model is nificant elements of wage coordi- most Western governments have
pointed to as a source of followed for three
inspiration for other decades is based on
people in their search “We believe that social and labour market minimal government
for a better social and policies have been important in mobilizing interference in busi-
economic system.” political support in the Nordic countries ness and low taxation.
Those words came Its foundation is that
from the Research Insti- for openness to new technology in production, when corporations do
tute of the Finnish free international trade, and competition well everybody suc-
Economy (ETLA)) and in domestic markets.” ceeds. According to
they are echoed by ob- this notion, the Nor-
The Nordic Model, Embracing Globalization
servers around the dic model doesn’t
and Sharing Risks, The Research Institute
world. work.
In its 2007 report, of the Finnish Economy, 2007 To those puzzled
The Nordic Model, ETLA by a healthy economy
outlines the principal features of nation, relatively generous unem- combined with high taxes, gener-
the system. They include: ployment benefits, and a promi- ous social programs, and strong
♦ a comprehensive welfare state nent role for government in pro- labour unions, ETLA says it has
with an emphasis on money tecting workers’ rights and help- a lot to do with the nature of
transfers to households and pub- ing people find jobs. public spending. The public
licly provided social services fi- The report, which focuses on purse opens for such items as
nanced by taxes, which are high Finland, Denmark, and Sweden, child care and education, infra-
notably for wage income and points out that they are among structure, research, employment
consumption; the most competitive countries subsidies, and job training.
8
NORDIC STATES - THE NORDIC MODEL
DEVELOPMENT OF THE WELFARE STATE
A strong economy and social equality is tion of wealth and power are allowed less
the combined goal of Nordic welfare free play. In political terms, there is in all the
states. The notion that everyone is entitled to Scandinavian countries a parliamentary de-
equal access to social and health services, mocracy with close relations between the or-
education, and culture is generally ac- ganizations representing the interests of both
cepted. Most of the social welfare tasks in employers and employees and the political
Scandinavian system. The re-
countries are laxed attitude of
handled by the the population
state or local au- towards both
thorities, and only the central gov-
to a limited ex- ernment and the
tent by individu- other public au-
als, families, thorities is a fun-
churches, or na- damental char-
tional welfare or- acteristic of the
ganizations. That political system.”
means a broad- But, the re-
based taxation port argues that
system with high the system is not
taxes. The bene- driven by politi-
fits are generous cal ideology:
and everyone is over the last
entitled to them. In 2006, Sweden spent nearly four percent of GDP on century, all po-
As the Royal research and development, the highest ratio in the litical parties, in-
Danish Ministry of world. On average, the Nordic countries spend three cluding non-
Foreign Affairs ex- percent of GDP on R&D, compared with around two socialist ones,
plains, an impor- percent in the English-speaking countries. have supported
tant part of the the develop-
Nordic model has been the political desire to ment of the welfare state.
ensure full employment since the Second “Thus, the welfare state does not represent
World War. While unemployment remains a a common Social Democratic ideology, but
problem, Foreign Affairs says Scandinavian a national political compromise on how to
countries have the highest participation rate organize and finance the social, health, and
in the world. educational benefits on which a political de-
In its report on conditions of life in Den- cision has been taken to provide for the
mark, it describes the Scandinavian welfare population…Consequently, a welfare system
model as one that “acts within a controlled has been established which is more harmoni-
capitalist market economy in which inequali- ous and in many areas more comprehensive
ties in income distribution and the concentra- than in most other countries in the world.”
9
NORDIC STATES - THE NORDIC MODEL
CHALLENGES TO THE NORDIC SYSTEM
With all its success, the Nordic model is facing a number of challenges,
particularly as a result of globalization and an aging population. Many think
the system will have to be reformed to keep it running successfully
T he most serious challenge to the Nor-
dic welfare state is changing demo-
graphics, with the baby boom generation of
dic Model?), the Council says the challenge
might be to find a better balance between
schemes that ensure that it is always more
the 1940s and 1950s entering retirement. That profitable to work than to receive benefits,
will place a huge demand on social services but still provide an economic and social
relating to age: not only are many in this safety net for people who face periodic un-
generation retiring early, they are living employment.
longer. With an aging, more ethnically diverse,
It’s been estimated that and more urban population,
the working-age population the Council concludes that
in Finland, for example, will the welfare society needs to:
decline from 66.5 percent ♦ Keep working-age people
(in 2007) to 57.5 percent by employed as long as possi-
2040. Those over 65 will in- ble and reverse the trend to-
crease from 16 to 26 per- ward early retirement;
cent of the population, and ♦ Possibly, increase the birth
those over 85 will grow from rate; and,
below two to more than six ♦ Improve integration of im-
percent over the same pe- migrants into the workforce,
riod. and attract and keep mi-
Figures are similar for Denmark and Swe- grant workers. (Some argue that low-skill mi-
den. gration produces additional strains on wel-
For the Nordic system to work there has to fare-state financing because such migrants
be a balance between those contributing typically receive benefits that exceed what
funding through taxation and those receiving they pay in taxes.)
benefits. The goal of the region is not to over- The authors of The Decline of the Welfare
haul the structure but to refine it in order to State (Assaf Razin and Efraim Sadka) argue
compete in the global economy but main- that aging populations, migration, and glob-
tain social cohesion. alization will make it impossible for the wel-
According to a 2007 discussion paper by fare state to maintain itself on such a large
the Nordic Council of Ministers, “It is not possi- scale. Published in 2005, the book suggests
ble to retain the welfare model without hav- that these pressures will shift the balance of
ing more people work, and remain working political power and lead to public support for
for longer.” cutting back traditional welfare-state bene-
In its report (What Lies ahead for the Nor- fits rather than expanding them.
10NORDIC STATES - THE NORDIC MODEL
“High taxes are economically
harmful, but their negative ef-
Between the early 1980s and 2007 the
fects can be mitigated if public
spending supports employment number of people over the age of 60 has
and growth…” explains the grown by nearly 800,000 in Nordic
study. countries; the population between
The authors go on to stress 15 and 59 has increased by 1.5
the importance “of a high level million. In the next 25 years,
of trust and absence of corrup-
there will be an additional
tion.” If the public has confi-
dence the government is not 2,452,000 people over
stealing or misusing its money it 60, and about
will strongly support a large pub- 1,455,000 fewer be-
lic sector. tween 15 and 59.
The result is a society re- In Norway, for
nowned for the universal nature example, popu-
of its social programs, along with
strong ties between welfare and
lation projections
labour-market policy. show that the number of people over 80 will increase by 150 percent between
Employment and flexible 2003 and 2050, while the working-age population during the same period
working arrangements are high, will increase by only 15 percent.
as are birth rates, according to
Norden, a cooperative organiza- tury Britain and its theories of grams. Typically, Nordic govern-
tion for the Nordic region. The economic laissez-faire, (free- ments set aside 27 percent of
very fact that women have access market capitalism). They include gross domestic product (GDP)
to affordable child- and elder- Australia, Canada, Ireland, New for social programs. The average
care, allows them to enter the Zealand, the U.K., and the U.S. in English-speaking countries is
labour market and the political “The high-tax, high-income about 17 percent of GDP.
arena to a greater degree than in states are the Nordic social de- Not surprisingly, poverty
other parts of the world. And, mocracies, no- rates are lower
that means they’re contributing tably Denmark, “(Economist) Friedrich in Nordic
to the tax base that supports the Finland, Nor- countries and
social programs that benefit way, and Swe- Von Hayek was wrong. average in-
everyone. den, which In strong and vibrant come is higher.
In its report, About the Nordic have been gov- democracies, a generous And still, their
Welfare Model, Norden says the erned by left- government
system is one of the most suc- of-center social social-welfare state is not budget sur-
cessful in the rankings of rich, democratic a road to serfdom but pluses are
developed economies. Gender parties for rather to fairness, econ- higher, or defi-
equality, care of the elderly, much or all of cits lower, as a
health centres and hospitals are the post-World omic equality, and inter- percentage of
examples of areas in which the War II era.” national competitiveness.” GDP than
Nordic countries have excelled. The article Scientific American, those of An-
And, an article in Scientific points out that November 2006 g l o - S a x on
American (November 2006) Nordic coun- countries.
points out that the low-tax, high- tries have a “healthy respect for According to the Scientific
income countries are mostly market forces,” but they com- American article, Nordic countries
English-speaking ones. They are bine this with a strong belief in “maintain their dynamism de-
linked historically with 19th cen- the need for anti-poverty pro- spite high taxation in several
11NORDIC STATES - THE NORDIC MODEL
EDUCATION
E
itself.
ducation is a crucial part of the Nor-
dic system and Finland is a model in
mathematics and collected data on student,
family, and institutional factors that could
help to explain differences in performance.
A recent report at BBC News (April 7, 2010) Not surprisingly, students from families with
explained that Finnish educators believe that a more advantaged socio-economic back-
everyone has something to offer and those ground were more likely to show a general
who struggle in a interest in science,
particular subject especially if they
are given extra had a parent in a
help. But, rather science-related
than being placed career.
in a separate class- However, the
room, students with study found that
difficulties receive streaming children
more attention at an early age
from an extra based on aca-
teacher available demic ability in-
in every class. creased the im-
The OECD pact of socio-
(Organization for economic back-
Economic Coop- “We see it as the right of the child to have ground, lowering
eration and Devel- daycare and preschool. It’s not a place student perform-
opment) has found where you dump your child when you’re ance on average.
that Finnish chil- working. It’s a place for your child to play and When the re-
dren spend the learn and make friends. Good parents put port was released
fewest number of their children in daycare. It’s not related to in Tokyo in April
hours in the class- socio-economic class.” Eeva Penttila, head of 2007, OECD Secre-
room in the devel-
international relations for Helsinki’s education tary-General An-
oped world. How- gel Gurría empha-
department, Globe and Mail, June 2009.
ever, they scored sized the impor-
the highest aver- tance of educa-
age results in science and reading in 2006. tion for the development of people and soci-
And, they came second in math, after South ety. “Effective and innovative education poli-
Korea. cies open enormous opportunities for indi-
The exams, known as PISA (Program for In- viduals,” he said. “They also underpin healthy
ternational Student Assessment), tested more and vibrant economies. In the highly com-
than 400,000 students in 57 countries in 2006. petitive globalized economy of today, quality
The focus of the report was on science but education is one of the most valuable assets
the assessment also included reading and that a society and an individual can have.”
12NORDIC STATES - THE NORDIC MODEL
ways. Most important, they
spend lavishly on research and
development and higher educa-
tion. All of them, but especially
Sweden and Finland, have taken
to the sweeping revolution in in-
formation and communications
technology and leveraged it to
g ain global competitive-
ness.” (see article on page 24)
A United Nations study a
year earlier (Social Policy and Eco-
nomic Development in the Nordic
Countries, 2005) also came to the
conclusion that social protection
and economic development can
go hand in hand. According to
the report, not only have Nordic
countries succeeded in combin- In Finland, children don’t start primary school until age seven. It’s believed
ing objectives thought to be at
that they learn best from play until then, and from the age of eight months,
odds with each other, the welfare
state has actually played an im- all children have access to free, full-day daycare and kindergarten. In addi-
portant role in economic devel- tion, primary and secondary schools are combined to avoid the potentially dis-
opment. ruptive transition from one school to another. There also is a culture of read-
The report explains that after ing with children at home and parents have regular contact with teachers. As
World War II Nordic countries well, all primary-school teachers have master’s degrees and the profession as a
tied economic and social policies whole is highly valued, as is the public school system.
together. It says the plan was to
ease the transition from farming unifying people, social programs everyone generally. They wrote a
to industry. “Social and housing promote stability. book about it, called The Spirit
policies facilitated the migration Family policy programs that Level: Why More Equal Societies Al-
of agrarian labour force from the reduce poverty provide eco- most Always Do Better, published
countryside to the factories in nomic security for children,
cities. The lowering of income which leads to better perform-
differences was seen as an im- ance in school and, later, FACT FILE
portant factor of guaranteeing achievement in the labour mar- In school science test results
smooth economic growth.” ket. Equality gives everyone ac- Finland was followed by
So, by focusing on equity and cess to education and culture, Hong Kong-China, Can-
the value of everyone’s contribu- and that improves society as a ada, Chinese Taipei, Esto-
tion to society, they fostered a whole by opening up opportuni- nia, Japan, and New Zea-
solid foundation of security upon ties to all. Universal health care land. Australia, the Nether-
which economic development makes for a healthy as well as so- lands, Korea, Germany, the
could thrive. “A social policy is phisticated population. It’s all United Kingdom, the Czech
much more than just guarantee- designed to improve the well- Republic, Switzerland, Aus-
ing security against various social being of individual citizens to tria, Belgium, Ireland, Liech-
risks,” states the study. “Social enhance all of society. tenstein, Slovenia, and Ma-
policy creates and fortifies social British social scientists, Rich- cao-China also scored
bonds and may enhance the de- ard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett above OECD average.
velopment of social capital.” By agree that equality is a plus for
13NORDIC STATES - THE NORDIC MODEL
QUESTIONING THE FUTURE
T he Nordic Council of Minister’s Five- Several years earlier, in 2002, the Royal
year Program on Welfare Research, Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs observed
which financed 15 research projects, that all the Scandinavian countries were de-
wrapped up in May 2006. In its discussion pa- veloping a supplementary welfare system,
per the following year, the Council raised a “giving greater benefits to those who are in
number of questions on the future of the Nor- the labour market. This is a clear deviation
dic welfare model. from the equality principle which is at the
Will it be possible to score high on welfare, heart of the Scandinavian welfare model.”
competitiveness, and innovation in the fu- The Research Institute of the Finnish Econ-
ture, considering omy (ETLA) put
how the global “… the present welfare arrangements originated it this way in
competitive and developed in the 1960s and 1970s at a 2007 in its re-
economy is time of high economic growth and low unem- port, The Nor-
evolving? Should ployment. It has never been the intention either dic Model,
we introduce Embracing
with unemployment, sickness benefits, or with
more needs Globalization,
evaluations, link cash benefits that so many people should receive and Sharing
welfare services them or that they should receive them for so long Risks: “With
more to earned as has been the case in recent years. The financ- higher mobility
entitlements, de- ing of the welfare state has thus become a prob- of labour it be-
fine what the lem, and as it has not been politically possible to comes in-
public sector creasingly pos-
increase taxes, which are already very high, the
should offer and sible to benefit
Scandinavian countries have accrued a very
finance, and de- from the enti-
fine the responsi- large national debt which on the long view tlements with-
bility of the pri- could represent a threat to the welfare systems.” out sharing the
vate individual? Royal Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Denmark – Con- cost (paying
The Council ditions of Life – The Scandinavian Welfare Model, 2002 the taxes).
also raised the “There are
issue of private versus public welfare provi- many examples. Graduates from domestic
sion, commenting that models in which the tax-financed universities increasingly make
private and public sectors are working to- their careers (and pay their taxes) abroad.
gether are being developed in several Euro- Citizens who have spent most of their working
pean countries. lives (and paid their taxes) abroad, return to
“Despite active political efforts in some their home country after retirement to collect
Nordic countries to prevent private involve- the benefits of free (or cheap) hospital care
ment, a parallel private market is evolving for and care for the elderly…With increasing
welfare services...People are becoming more claims on entitlements…and eroding tax
uncertain about whether they will receive bases…the long-run sustainability of the Nor-
the services they need from the public sec- dic model could be in serious jeopardy.”
tor, and those who can afford to do so buy But, while it needs significant reform, ETLA
health insurance and private nursing and believes the core of the Nordic model should
care services.” be preserved, sharing both benefits and risks.
14NORDIC STATES - THE NORDIC MODEL
in 2009. The authors provide
plenty of evidence that rich PIONEERING FOR WOMEN’S RIGHTS
countries where incomes are
more evenly distributed have
longer-lived citizens and lower
rates of obesity, delinquency, de-
S ome
lieve
foundation of the
be-
the
pression, and teenage pregnancy
Nordic welfare
than richer countries where
model is gender
wealth is more concentrated.
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES: equality. From
1. A 2006 Scientific American 1909 until 1929
article made this comment: “The re- the Nordic coun-
sults (under the Nordic model) for the tries worked to-
households at the bottom of income dis- gether to reform
tribution are astoundingly good, espe- marriage laws
cially in contrast to the mean-spirited
with gender
neglect that now passes for American
social policy. The U.S. spends less equality at its
than almost all rich countries on social core. The project had as much to do with economics as
services for the poor and disabled, and equality, because male-dominated society “had become a
it gets what it pays for: the highest pov- liability to the economy,” says the Danish Centre for Infor-
erty rate among the rich countries and mation on Gender, Equality, and Ethnicity. “The project was
an exploding prison population. Actu- so radical that the rest of Europe did not achieve the same
ally, by shunning public spending on
levels of equality until the 1970s.”
health, the U.S. gets much less than it
pays for, because dependence on private One of the aims was to preserve the nuclear family
health care has led to a ramshackle which was becoming less appealing to many women be-
system that yields mediocre results at cause of its history of male dominance. In 19th century de-
very high costs.” Contrast this with the mocratic Denmark, the man was still the head of the family
current situation in the U.S. under with full authority over his wife’s property and income, as
President Barack Obama. well as parental control. On entering marriage women had
2. The Nordic Council of Ministers
to promise obedience to their husbands, and feared losing
says Spain is one of the countries going
furthest in evolving new models that their children in the event of a marital split.
combine public and private elements. It The reforms made marriage a civil contract between two
gives the example of the Swedish equal parties.
health-care company Capio, which has
received a 30-year contract to run the
primary and specialist health service in inhabitants, but is run by a private models are created for collaboration
a Madrid suburb with 130,000 in- company. The Council says a parallel with private and non-profit parties.
habitants. The health service is still in the Nordic countries might be the Research how the changes are working
publicly financed and available to all Swedish school system. Private schools in Spain.
can provide educational services with
public financing within the same frame- Website
FACT FILE
work as public schools. Several panel The Nordic Model - http://
The membership of the
members feel that the Nordic countries
Danish Women’s Society www.etla.fi/
risk using resources inefficiently, having
was one-third male, around files/1892_the_nordic_mode
wider social gaps, and too little quality
1900. development and innovation unless new l_complete.pdf
15NORDIC STATES - CANADA: A NORDIC COUNTRY?
A Nordic Country?
Canada and the Nordic countries are moving further apart on social policy
G
eography makes Government systems in all by an appointed Governor-
Canada a Nordic countries are similar but not General. Finland and Iceland are
country. In com- identical. In all countries, every- republics with elected presidents,
mon with Den- body over the age of 18 gets to although in Iceland the job is
mark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, cast a ballot in elections, but mostly ceremonial.
and Finland, we all have land Canada is the only one to have a Canada is the only one of the
within the Arctic Circle. first-past-the-post system of de- six to have an upper house – the
(Iceland just squeaks in with ciding who wins. All the Nordic appointed Senate. The group of
the tiny island of countries is secular
Grimsey - 40 km with a separation
north of the of church and
mainland -, which state. Those few
sits smack on the similarities and a
Arctic Circle. Den- whole lot of ever-
mark qualifies green trees just
through its loose about sums up the
sovereignty over ways in which
Greenland.) Canada and the
All these na- Nordics are alike
tions are maritime today.
with long coast- However, the
lines in relation to countries came to
their size. That be more alike al-
makes fishing and most half a cen-
ocean ecology tury ago. That was
items of great in- a time when the
terest in all capitals. All six coun- countries have proportional rep- collective good of society was
tries are thinly populated resentation in which parliamen- seen as more important than in-
(Denmark is an exception), tend tarians are elected based on the dividual freedom.
to concentrate in a few cities, and percentage of the popular vote For 15 years from the mid-
have to endure miserable their party receives. 1960s the Liberal governments
weather at times. Again, except Denmark, Norway, and Swe- of Lester B. Pearson and Pierre
for Denmark, the wilderness is den are constitutional monar- Elliot Trudeau enacted a series
never very far away. Economi- chies where the head of state is a of social reforms. But, the proc-
cally, this group of countries has hereditary monarch; the posi- ess of adopting “The Nordic
relied heavily on primary indus- tions are largely ceremonial. Can- Way” (it wasn’t called that back
tries such as mining, forestry, ada’s head of state is also a royal, then) began in September 1960.
fishing, and agriculture. Queen Elizabeth II, represented The Liberal Party had been
16NORDIC STATES - CANADA: A NORDIC COUNTRY?
TO TAX OR NOT TO TAX
P eople in Nordic countries pay more
taxes than Canadians to support a
more extensive package of social programs.
ceived sup-
port from
an unlikely
Almost 49 percent of the average Dane’s in- quarter. In
come goes to taxes, while the average Ca- a poll of
nadian pays 33 percent. 151 top
The conservative argument in favour of business
lower taxes is that it encourages higher levels executives
of business investment. This creates more jobs (March
and, with more people earning, tax revenues 2010) al-
go up. m o s t
Since coming to power in 2006, the Con- three
servative government has lopped several out of five say some tax increases may be
percentage points off corporate taxes, per- necessary if Ottawa is to balance its books.
sonal income tax, and the Goods and Ser- And, there’s evidence to back the notion
vices Tax. Cuts to taxes are popular with vot- that higher taxes result in a better quality of
ers. life. Two York University tax law professors –
When Liberal leader Stephane Dion pro- Neil Brooks and Thaddeus Hwong – com-
posed putting a tax on carbon as a way of pared six Anglo-American countries including
combatting climate change he was badly Canada with four Nordic nations.
mauled by voters. Lawrence Martin in The In their December 2006 report they say
Globe and Mail (March 11, 2010) says Liberals that “high-tax countries have been more
won’t even mention tax increases now. The successful in achieving their social objectives
nearest they have come is for party leader than low-tax countries. Interestingly, they
Michael Ignatieff to say, after a March 2010 have done so with no economic penalty.”
policy conference, that planned corporate They looked at 50 indicators, such as pov-
tax cuts should be cancelled. erty, gender equality, health outcomes, etc.
The Conservative Party has mocked the In 42 categories the Nordics outperformed
suggestion. However, Mr. Ignatieff has re- the Anglo-American group.
badly mauled in the federal elec- thinkers to the meeting to deliver sal health care (1966); Company
tion of 1958. Prime Minister papers and discuss policy. From of Young Canadians (1966); Ca-
John Diefenbaker’s Progressive the conference came the blue- nadian International Develop-
Conservatives trounced the Lib- print for Liberal social policies. ment Agency (1968); homosexu-
erals after the latter had been in Back in power in 1963, the Lib- ality was decriminalized in 1969;
power for decades. Party leader erals embarked on a flurry of Status of Women Canada (1971);
Lester B. Pearson set about re- left-of-centre social policies simi- Multiculturalism was made offi-
building the brand and one of lar to those in Scandinavia. These cial state policy (1971); Unem-
the key strategies was a confer- included: the Canada Student ployment Insurance Act ex-
ence in Kingston, Ontario. Loan Program (1964); the Can- tended to cover sickness and ma-
Pearson brought a lot of deep ada Pension Plan (1965); univer- ternity leave (1971); and so on.
17NORDIC STATES - CANADA: A NORDIC COUNTRY?
anced, Liberal Finance Minister
and later Prime Minister Paul
Martin cut taxes instead of
boosting social spending. Murray
Dobbin, writing for rabble.ca
Swedish-born Ca- (January 20, 2006) points out
nadian Gideon that starting in 2000, Martin “cut
taxes by $100 billion over five
Sundback, improv-
years.” The effect of cuts such as
ing on the work of
these is to lock in the downsized
others, designed the nature of social programs. Any
“Separable Fas- future politician who wants to
tener” in 1913; the revive the welfare state must first
device later became increase taxes, and that’s a recipe
known as the for electoral disaster.
“zipper.” (On November 14, 2003 Paul
Martin was chosen as Leader of
There were other initiatives to be paid for. In 1985, the debt the Liberal Party and became
that extended the activities of the reached $200 billion. In 1992, it Prime Minister of Canada. In his
state into the lives of Canadi- blasted through $400 billion and acceptance speech he said: “The
ans – a national labour code, it reached the half trillion mark true challenge of leadership is to
government-funded crop insur- in 1994. rally a nation to its unfulfilled
ance, and legal aid for those who Canada’s national debt was promise. To build a society based
could not afford to hire a lawyer. now so massive that it could no on equality, not privilege; on
For those on the left of the longer be ignored. Out of every duty, not entitlement. A society
political spectrum these were dollar Ottawa collected from tax- based on compassion and caring;
promoted as ways of helping the payers, 40 cents was going to pay not indifference or neglect.”)
less fortunate in society. The just the interest on all the money Despite those noble senti-
programs were to be paid for by the country had borrowed. ments, Paul Martin was now in a
progressive taxation that redis- The Liberal government of Canada where the political cli-
tributed income; the more you Jean Chretien started to slash mate had changed under the in-
earned, the more taxes you paid. government spending. Through fluence of the United States. The
Those on the right criticized the 1990s, the cherished social idea that all people had a duty to
such measures as interfering with programs of Canadians began to help the less fortunate gave way
the freedom of individuals to decline. It became way more dif- to the belief that each individual
control their own lives. The ficult to qualify for Unemploy- should be responsible for her or
growth of a “nanny state” cre- ment Insurance benefits; stu- his own welfare. Government
ated huge government bureauc- dents had to pay higher tuition programs, many people came to
racies and an unfair tax burden. fees at universities; hospital beds believe, were not the solution,
But, the tax burden was not, were closed and wait times for they were the problem. Public
in fact, high enough to pay for all treatment got longer. services could be provided more
these programs and Ottawa The deal was sold to Canadi- efficiently if they were run by
started to rack up some big ans as “Short term pain for long private enterprise and individuals
debts. At first, nobody bothered term gain;” when the debt was could have the freedom to chose
much about the debt. Most Ca- back under control, social pro- among the options.
nadians loved their comprehen- grams could be ramped up again. Right-wing governments such
sive social programs and politi- But, the re-investment in the as that of Stephen Harper’s Con-
cians, seeking to be elected, did- public good has never happened. servatives were voted into
n’t like to remind voters they had Once the budget was bal- power. The bedrock of their ide-
18NORDIC STATES - CANADA: A NORDIC COUNTRY?
ology is that the best government
is the smallest one.
Since Mr. Harper took over
the reigns of government he has
put this philosophy into action,
moving Canada away from the
Nordic model.
On March 11, 2010, colum-
nist Lawrence Martin wrote
about this in The Globe and Mail:
“National programs such as
daycare and the Kelowna Accord
on Native health and education
have been scrapped. Multicultur-
alism, that old Liberal fundamen-
tal, is being curbed as limits to
cultural tolerance are advocated.
The country’s new citizenship Eighty-five percent of Swedes live in the country’s southern half; more than 80
guide has a more conservative percent of Canadians live within 200 kilometres of the Canada/U.S. border.
lean.”
The folks over at the Cana- thus been transformed from liberals have moved away from
dian Health Coalition (CHC) guardians of the public good to their left-of-centre policies of the
have spotted an erosion of Medi- boosters of private profit, from 1960s and ‘70s, a clear majority
care, which is supposed to pro- seekers of social justice to de- of Canadians seems to favour a
vide equal access to care and not stroyers of the welfare state.” less Nordic approach to social
be for profit. In an October 2008 Mr. Finn even quotes the for- organization.
report, CHC found 42 diagnostic mer Conservative Premier of Al- SUGGESTED ACTIVITY:
clinics, 72 surgical hospitals, and berta, Peter Lougheed, as saying: Writing for the left-leaning Canadian
16 physicians in Canada all oper- “We are becoming increasingly Centre for Policy Alternatives
ating on a for-profit basis. Americanized and this imposes (September 2008), Ed Finn asks:
“Among these clinics,” said an un-Canadian individualism on “Weren’t governments originally estab-
the report, “we found evidence our ethic.” lished to protect and advance collective
to suspect 89 possible violations But, does it? Canadians have interests? And wasn’t such an overrid-
of the Canada Health Act in five twice voted for a right-of-centre ing purpose inherently hostile to the cult
provinces. These include clinics government. In 2006, the Con- of individualism? Indeed it was, and so
that appear to be selling two-tier servative Party won 124 of Can- the corporate, political, media, and aca-
health care and extra billing pa- ada’s 308 seats; more than any demic champions of ‘individual rights
tients for medically-necessary other party but not enough for a and freedoms’ had to reverse this prime
services.” The group concludes majority. In 2008, the Conserva- government mandate. They had to con-
that “the federal government is tives won 143 seats, still not vert government into a mechanism for
not enforcing the Canada Health enough for a majority, but show- promoting private and individual inter-
Act to protect patients from in- ing an increase in popularity. ests instead.” Discuss.
creasingly aggressive attempts to The latest Ekos opinion poll
dismantle equal access to health (March 2010) shows the Conser- Website
care for all Canadians.” vatives (33.1 percent) more
Writing for the left-leaning popular than any other party. Canadian Nordic Society -
Canadian Centre for Policy Al- Their nearest rival, the Liberal http://www.
ternatives (September 2008), Ed Party, is the choice of 28.9 per- canadiannordicsociety.com/
Finn says, “Governments have cent of Canadians. And, as the
19NORDIC STATES - POLITICS
The Art of Cooperation
After some early hostilities the Nordic countries have settled into political harmony
P
atching together the ing the turmoil of the Russian practice, neutrality was impossi-
political history of the Revolution (1917), Finland ble.
Nordic region can be a seized the opportunity to set it- In 1949, Denmark, Iceland,
challenge. The bounda- self up as an independent nation and Norway threw their lot in
ries among the countries that for the first time. with the Western allies by joining
make up the region – Denmark, Since then, stability has more the North Atlantic Treaty Or-
Finland, Iceland, Norway, and or less settled in with boundaries ganization (NATO) a mutual de-
Sweden – have been fluid over and sovereignties pretty much as fence group.
time. So has the sovereignty of they are today. In theory, Sweden and
each nation. While most of the countries Finland remained neutral, al-
In the 13th century, Finland of Europe were busy bashing though Sweden cooperated
was part of Sweden and Iceland themselves to pieces in World closely with NATO.
belonged to Norway. In the next War I (1914-18), the Nordics Finland was in a tough
century, they all joined to- spot. Its sentiments were with
gether in the Kalmar Un- the Western alliance, but it
ion. When that broke up,
“Even we right-wing politicians, shared a long border with the
Denmark and Norway if we were in England or Canada, Soviet Union. The threat of
were, effectively, a single would be seen as being very left-wing.” invasion meant that Finland
nation. Swedish Liberal Party Member had to tread a careful diplo-
Sweden/Finland and matic path and do nothing to
of Parliament Tina Acketoft,
Denmark/Norway were annoy its heavily armed
then sworn enemies for quoted in The Globe and Mail, neighbour. The situation
about 300 years. Several September 16, 2006. came to be known as
wars were fought as the “Finlandization,” describing
two sides tried to establish domi- stayed out of the fight. They the influence that one powerful
nance in the region. tried to do the same in the sec- country has on the policies of a
In the 19th century, a weak- ond round of warfare (1939-45) smaller neighbouring country.
ened Denmark handed Norway but were not so fortunate. Ger- Today, the resentments
over to Sweden. However, Swe- many occupied Denmark and caused by past squabbles are
den lost control of its eastern Norway, the Allies occupied Ice- largely buried and the five na-
half (mostly, what is now land and Greenland, and the tions cooperate in many areas.
Finland) to Russia. Denmark also Finns got involved in a nasty In 1953, the Nordic Council
gave in to Iceland’s increasing brawl with both the Soviet Un- was set up as a place where com-
demand for independence and ion and Germany. However, for mon issues could be dealt with.
granted it home rule in 1874. A the most part, they avoided the Initially, the group included Den-
complete separation came in devastation that flattened large mark, Norway, and Sweden, with
1944, when Icelanders voted to parts of Europe. Finland and Iceland joining later.
sever ties to Denmark’s monar- The Nordics tried to remain The idea was that the Council
chy. neutral during the Cold War would encourage political, eco-
In 1905, Sweden and Norway when Western nations squared nomic, and cultural teamwork
separated peacefully. Then, dur- off against the Soviet Union. In among the five states. Some early
20NORDIC STATES - POLITICS
initiatives included the easy
movement of labour, passport- TOLERANCE WEAKENING
free travel, and some common
legislation. But, the formation of
the European Union (then called
the European Economic Com-
F ollowing World War II, a lot of immigrants settled in the
Nordic countries. Sweden has been especially gener-
ous in accepting newcomers and all have taken in substan-
munity) started to overlap the
tial numbers of refugees.
Council’s activities.
The Nordics joined a compet- Recently, problems with assimilation have cropped up,
ing trading group called the with points of friction mostly focussed on Islam. The issue has
European Free Trade Associa- become significant in Denmark.
tion (EFTA). Founded in 1960, In 2005, a Danish newspaper published some caricatures
EFTA included Denmark, Nor- of the prophet Mohammed. To Muslims it is a grave sin to
way, and Sweden, along with depict Mohammed in any way. Their reaction to the car-
Portugal, Austria, Switzerland,
toons was to stage violent demonstrations around the world
and the United Kingdom.
and the trashing of two Danish embassies.
Finland and Iceland came in
later. The push-back was immediate and strong. Writing in The
But, the European Union New York Times (February 12, 2006), Danish journalist Martin
proved to be a more attractive Burcharth commented: “Not surprisingly, Islam has come to
trading organization and EFTA be viewed by many as a threat to the survival of Danish cul-
members began to drift into the ture.”
EU. Denmark and the U.K. went But even before the Mohammed cartoon fuss, Danes
in 1973. Portugal joined the EU
were getting antsy about Islam.
in 1986. Finally, Austria, Finland,
and Sweden quit EFTA for the Burcharth quotes Denmark’s Cultural Affairs Minister Brian
larger group in 1995. Mikkelsen as saying during the summer of 2005: “In Denmark
Today, EFTA has four mem- we have seen the appearance of a parallel society in which
bers: Iceland, Liechtenstein, minorities practice their own medieval values and undemo-
Norway, and Switzerland. How- cratic views. This is the new front in our cultural war.”
ever, Iceland is in talks about A few months earlier, BBC News reported that, “Queen
joining the EU in 2012. The
Margrethe of Denmark has spoken out against radical Islam
Norwegian people have twice
rejected joining the European and called on Muslim immigrants in the country to improve
Union in national referendums. their Danish language skills.”
With all but one Nordic state And, since it was founded in 1995, the anti-immigrant
now in, or about to be in, the Danish People’s Party (DPP) has grown steadily in popularity.
EU, the Nordic Council has be- In the November 2007 election, the party won 25 seats and
come more of a cultural organi- the governing centre-right coalition depends on the DPP for
zation; politics and economics
support.
are of less importance. NATO
and the EU are now the forums
for political and economic coop- of the NATO-led alliance.” eral, the number of seats a party
eration among the Nordic na- This notion of cooperation gets is in proportion to that
tions. “For example,” says the among nations characterizes the party’s share of the popular vote.
Nordic Council, “all have sent domestic politics of the region. As a typical example let’s look
troops or civilian personnel All Nordic countries have at Denmark’s election of No-
(Iceland does not have armed proportional systems of electing vember 2007. The Liberal Party
soldiers) to Afghanistan as part members of parliament. In gen- got 26.2 percent of all the votes
21NORDIC STATES - POLITICS
policy.
KALMAR UNION This electoral system seems
to encourage more voter partici-
T he unification of nations was popular in the middle of
the 19th century, and led to the creation of two new
countries in 1871 – Italy and Germany. Before that date
pation as citizens feel their indi-
vidual vote counts. Typical turn-
outs for general elections in the
both countries were divided up into many separate states Nordic countries are between 80
(Germany had more than 300), some of them very tiny, and 85 percent. (Voter participa-
ruled mostly by princes, dukes, and kings. tion in the 2008 Canadian elec-
A similar movement for unification stirred in Scandinavia
tion was 59 percent and has
never exceeded 79 percent.)
at the same time, based on a common Norse heritage go-
All Nordic countries have
ing back more than 1,000 years. There had been a previous variations on the Danish theme.
unification. In 1397, the Nordic region formed the Kalmar For example Iceland puts its
Union. This was dominated by Denmark, something that did- threshold for winning seats at
n’t go down well with Swedes. Irritation led to fighting and five percent of the popular vote,
the union broke up finally in 1536. Sweden at four percent, while
The 19th century movement was called Nordism. It Finland has no threshold.
started among Danish and Swedish university students and Each country restricts the
was working towards regional unity under a single nation. vote to citizens, but Norway has
However, in 1864 Prussia (Germany) attacked Denmark
a little quirk; the King of Norway
(Harald V since 1991) is not con-
in a dispute of land they both claimed. Instead of rushing to
sidered a citizen and is therefore
Denmark’s aid, Sweden stayed out of the fight. That killed
not allowed to vote in general
any hopes of a grand union of three nations united into elections.
one. In most proportional repre-
sentation systems the parties
cast and won 26.3 percent of the II since 1972, calls the leaders of publish lists of candidates based
seats (46). The Social Democrats all the parties with seats to a con- on seniority. If a party wins 25
received 25.5 percent of the ference. The conference advises percent of the popular vote then
votes and were given 25.7 per- the queen which party leader has the top quarter of its party list
cent of the seats (45). Further the best chance of forming a gets seats.
down the list the Red-Green Al- government and he or she is However, in Finland, voters
liance collected 2.2 percent of given the task of putting together tend to vote for individual candi-
the ballots cast and was awarded a coalition. The negotiations go dates rather than political parties.
2.3 percent of the seats (4). Par- on until a government, which Under this system people can
ties must get over the threshold may be made up of several par- register dissatisfaction with a
of two percent of the popular ties, is put together. party or its leadership by voting
vote to win seats. This system leads to many for a junior member of the party.
After an election, the coun- parties having seats, in our 2007 This means that senior party
try’s monarch, Queen Margrethe example above, eight parties had members can lose their seats if
representatives in the parliament. the electorate is unhappy with
FACT FILE
No party has won an absolute them. The Finnish system also
majority in Denmark in more helps small parties with popular-
“Nordism” should not be
than 110 years. With many par- ity in a single region elect mem-
confused with “nordicism,”
ties and many points of view at bers.
which is the twisted belief in the table, Danish governments However, there is usually not
the racial superiority of Nor- have learned to compromise, ne- a lot to choose among the parties
dic people. gotiate, and reach consensus on and their policies. For most of
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