Transcript 8 Sweden

Sweden
Swedish Values and Political Philosophy:
• Social Democracy:
– Key difference from communism is the liberal
belief in gradual change rather than revolution
• Core Values:
– Compassion and Collective Responsibility
• All individuals have a moral and collective
responsibility to help others in need
– Democracy
• People should be encouraged to participate
actively in government and have the freedom of
choice
– Freedom and Tolerance
• People have the right to express themselves
and to explore personal values
– Social Equality
• Equal and universal access to social programs,
redistribution of wealth through progressive
taxation, and a mixed economy
– Private enterprise is important to promote growth
in the economy, but this growth is not stable
without significant government intervention and
public enterprise
– Collective social action (welfare state)
• Government funded social programs that will
raise the standard of living as well as quality of
life
Political Spectrum Sweden
Liberal
Radical
Left
Social
Democrat Party
•Reforms and
peaceful
changes
•Have held
power
sporadically form
the 1950s
Right
Centre
Centre Party
•Promote the
interest of the
Swedish farmers
Left Party
•Communist
party including
violent change
•Limited support
Green Party
•Environmental
party
Socialist Block
Reactionary
Conservative
Liberal Party
•Has changed
policies with the
changing
economic
realities
Christian
Democrats
•Attempted to
deal with
economic
problems with a
‘Christian’
philosophy
Moderate Party
•Former conservative party
•Main Right wing party
•Generally conservative
economic policies
Non Socialist Block
New
Democracy
•Neoconservative
beliefs
Swedish Political System:
• Parliamentary Democracy
• Executive
– Monarch
• Represents the country
• Cannot participate in political affairs or be a member of the government
– Prime Minister
• Head of government and accountable to the Riksdag
• The speaker of the Riksdag chooses the PM who must then win a majority
of votes in the Riksdag
– Appoints cabinet, government officials, and judges
– Determines government policies and submits them to Parliament
• Legislative
– Riksdag
• Any decision in this body must be made with the approval of the majority of
the members
• Political parties that can keep the majority of votes stay in power
• If they cannot then the speaker asks the other leaders of the political parties
to form a majority
• Judicial
– Supreme Court
• Five appointed members (serve until 65 or removed)
• Are able to determine if a law is constitutional or not
JUDICIARY
EXECUTIVE
LEGISLATURE
Monarch
Appoints
judges
Supreme Court
Advises
Prime Minister
Responsible to
Riksdag
Cabinet
Responsible to
Decide
policy
Other Courts
Decide
cases
Government
Ministries
Administer and
implement laws
Feedback
VOTERS
Responsible to
Passing a Bill:
• Prelegislative Process
– Lots of debate and discussion before a bill ever
makes it to Parliament
• The system is based on consensus, simply due
to the nature of the system, rarely does any
party hold a majority of votes
– This means that for legislation to pass it must have
the support of more than one party
• Generally this means that contentious bills do
not get passed and that there will be lots of
changes to a bill before it becomes law
Elections and Voting:
• Electoral System:
– Sweden is divided into
29 multimember
constituencies
• 310 members are
elected from these
• 39 seats are allocated
based on popular vote
(by party)
• Preferential voting
– Voters can also signify
which party they prefer
by marking this on
their ballot
The Swedish Economic System
Brief Economic History:
•
Limited Intervention (1900-1944)
– Economy was based on the export of goods and services
– This changed with the Depression and the erection of high tariff walls world wide
as nations attempted to stabilize their economies
– German rearmament rapidly expanded the economy
•
Building Social Democracy (1944-1975)
– During WWII Sweden had to impose price controls and production quotas
– 1944 the Social Democrats created the socialist society in Sweden
• Comprehensive plan: free healthcare, pension, sick pay, and graduated taxation to pay
for the system
– 1950-1960s
• Best time in the economy huge exports, socialist policies strongly supported in this time
period
– 1973-1974
• European recession triggers a crisis in Sweden
•
Economic Crisis and Change (1975-1990)
– A non-socialist government takes power and looks to fix the economic problems
• Decrease in government spending and attempts to attract investors and trading partners
– Return of the socialists
• Major tax cuts and a move towards a more market economy (relative)
•
European Integration (1991-Present)
– What looked to be a severe rescission prompted Sweden to examine a role in
the EU
• Divide the nation
– The Swedish population finally voted (by majority) to join in 1994
Swedish Economy:
• Private Sector
– Consumers
• Largest and most
influential group in the
economy
– Business Enterprise
• Cooperatives
– 1/3 of population
members of
cooperatives profit
sharing and increases
buying power
– Corporate Sweden
• Large corporations
dominate the economy
Swedish Economy:
• Public Sector:
– Fiscal Policy
• Maintain full employment
• Progressive taxation (depending on time period)
– Monetary Policy
• Neoconservative policies especially within the bank post
1980
– Indicative planning
• Meeting with all members of the economy to determine the
goals of the economy (all levels of the government and
economy)
• As a result of this system Sweden has one of the most
peaceful labor records of any Western nation
– Collective bargaining
– Co-Determination and collective ownership
• These actions gave greater voice to employees to all aspects
of the Swedish economy
The ‘Cradle to Grave Welfare
State’
• The Swedish Government provides
comprehensive social services
such as:
– Free prenatal care
– Maternity and paternity benefits
– Free daycare and nursery
schools
– Family allowances
– Free lunches for older children
– Free university education
– Free medical and dental care
– Subsidized lunches and bus
passes
– Guaranteed 5 weeks paid
vacation per year
– Pensions tied to the cost of
living
The Cost
• In order to pay for
these benefits
Swedes pay the
highest taxes of any
industrialized nations
• Steep progressive
taxes
– The more money you
make the more you
pay in taxes
• 60-80%
Conclusion:
• This system has provided
Sweden with the highest
standard of living in the
world
• Low levels of both
unemployment and
inflation have been
sustained
• 1982 the Swedish
economy experienced a
drastic downturn
(economic recession)
– The Third Way
The Third Way:
• This programs main goal was to keep unemployment
and inflation in check and institute tax reforms
• Government created new jobs, instituted retraining
programs and increasing worker mobility (attempt to
keep workers in touch with the job market)
• Unemployed workers can lose benefits if they refuse a
job or retraining
• The government stopped funding for companies who
were not successful
• Tax reforms have abolished some deductions set the top
rate at 60% and provide incentives to save
• Unlike any other nation Sweden has had the chance to
experiment safely with socialism