Swedish lessons
Johan Wennström 4:01pm
As one of the many conservatives who cast his vote for Sweden's centre-right Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt in September 2006, I found it uplifting to read the speech he gave at the LSE on Tuesday night. It included a number of controversial but important statements. He said the root of Sweden's problems, economic and educational, is the radical 'socialist' policies which 'swept over Swedish society' in the 1970's; policies that were about 'questioning free enterprise' and 'sharp tax rises'. Unfortunately, Reinfeldt has never dared to say this in front a Swedish audience.
His government has put the brakes on the rising unemployment figures by making it more profitable to work, and improved the state of Swedish schools as well as continuing the education legacy of Carl Bildt's government, which introduced the system of independent state schools described by Fraser Nelson in this week's Spectator. But in too many other ways, Reinfeldt has allowed the 'mad quarter of a century' to continue into the 21st. His party is doing almost nothing to change the massive legislation that cripples Sweden's labour market while a recent proposal (fortunately stopped) suggested a 'roof' on private health care insurance policies. It has gone from wanting to slash petrol taxes to introducing more taxes on motorists. All of which owes more to outdated social democratic ideas than bold new thinking.
David Cameron, who was in the audience, should think very carefully about what he wants to copy from his Swedish colleague.
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Comments
James Sproule
February 29th, 2008 4:57pmIf Gordon Brown has an ideal, it is the Sweden. Reasonably entrepreneurial, yet with a client state so large and so all encompassing, that even on the rare occasions when the left does not win, the right dare not do anything.
Herbert Thornton
February 29th, 2008 8:34pmI think the ideal to which James refers has already been reached, not just in Sweden, but in Britain and most other western countries.
Certainly, David Cameron's Tories and the Lib Dems are both equally terrified of trying to change it. Gordon Brown needs only to preside over maintaining it.
If we want change we have to look elsewhere.
Jan Persson
March 1st, 2008 1:19amJames Sproule is absolutely right. I am a Swedish citizen and in my country more than 50% of the population is either employed by the government or absolutely dependent on it to be able to provide for themselves. Under these conditions it is not an easy task for a right wing party to win an an election. My advice to Cameron is to stick to his basic ideology since it serves the majority of people best.
Buckinghamshire Tory
March 1st, 2008 7:35amI agree with most of what you are saying, but you have to remember two issues. 1. The currenct centre-right government was not elected on the promise of a radical overhaul of Sweden, or Swedens economy. That is not what the majority of Swedish voters want. If Reinfeld breaks that promise, Rosenbad will be delivered to Mona Sahlin in 2011. The government must push for reforms, but do so carefully. Then who knows, maybe the government can be re-elected? 2. Even though Moderaterna might want to push for very radical reforms, that enthusiasm is not shared by the three other parties in the government.
Nicholas
March 1st, 2008 12:20pmGordon Brown's ideal may be Sweden but the reality of his attempts to achieve it are more the PRC or the 1960's GDR. My own aspirations are not to be Swedish but to be English.