Co-operation
- Iceland facing watershed moment as PM calls snap elections
- Iceland is heading for snap elections in November after the right-left coalition of Bjarni Benediktsson collapsed in October over a range of disagreements. Political scientists were not surprised and some predict a watershed moment in Icelandic politics.
- Denmark cracks down on social dumping and money laundering
- Danish authorities have introduced tighter legislation and lawsuits to stop cooperation between gangs and lawyers in cases of money laundering and social dumping.
- Claes-Mikael Ståhl: Money and solidarity needed for the green transition
- Right-wing populists are gaining ground in Europe and if they get more power in the Parliament, ambitions for the green transition and for a social and just Europe risk being pushed back. "We worry about even more push-backs in the future," says Claes-Mikael Ståhl, the European Trade Union Congress Deputy General Secretary.
- EU and Nordics cooperate on energy poverty
- New EU rules oblige the Nordic countries to ensure that energy crises do not lead to increased poverty. A new report recommends Nordic cooperation on the issue and a Danish MEP calls energy poverty “unsustainable”.
- Estonia welcomes Sweden and Finland into Nato
- One year after Finland joined Nato, Sweden has also become part of the Nato family. This brings them together with Norway, Iceland and Denmark, members since the start in 1949.
- When the Nordic open labour market ended overnight
- This summer, the common Nordic labour market will be 70 years old. But have we really been able to work freely in a neighbouring Nordic country for that whole period of time? The border between Norway and Sweden was closed for 23 months during the Corona pandemic, a new book published by the Svinesund Committee points out.
- Faroese independence is suddenly back on the table
- The Faroe Islands would like to become a full member of the Nordic Council. But since the Swedish Minister for Nordic Cooperation has dismissed that possibility, more Faroese politicians argue that the islands should review their role as part of the Danish realm and in the Nordic Council.
- Leaders' lack of knowledge about the Norwegian model threatens competitiveness
- Anyone who wants to lead a Norwegian business should understand the Norwegian model. But far from all leaders do, according to Ketil Vedøy, who has spent more than 20 years as a top leader within HR and management. He participated at the launch of this year’s Medbestemmelsesbarometer (Joint decision-making barometer) at OsloMet/AFI.
- Karen Ellemann: All of the Nordics in Nato “positive in every way”
- The Secretary General of the Nordic Council of Ministers believes Nordic cooperation will be even stronger when all of the Nordic countries are Nato members. But during the Arctic Frontiers conference in Tromsø, Karen Ellemann repeated that a council of defence ministers is not presently being planned.
- Sweden will celebrate the common Nordic labour market in 2024
- As Sweden takes over the Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers next year, it will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the common Nordic labour market. A Nordic-Baltic meeting on fighting workplace crime is also scheduled.
- Karen Ellemann – Nordic through and through
- The Nordic Council of Ministers’ new Secretary General takes on responsibility for the Nordic cooperation as challenges are piling up – on security policy, the environment and the Nordic model itself. But she is an incurable optimist and believes the Nordic vision can be achieved.
- LAMPA – Latvian democracy festival with Nordic inspiration
- To strengthen democratic conversation culture through the exchange of ideas and by seeking understanding between people of diverse opinions. That is the purpose of the Latvian LAMPA festival, which has grown bigger each year since its inception in 2015.
- Ukrainian women in Lithuania: We want to work for our country
- Many well-educated Ukrainian women who have fled with their children to Lithuania struggle to find skilled work. Now, with the support from the Nordic Council of Ministers and others, women are getting the knowledge and tools they need to rebuild their country once the war ends.
- Kjell-Arne Ottosson: Wants faster train connections and new Council of Minsters
- The Nordic Council unanimously declared five years ago it wanted to create a council of ministers for transport and infrastructure as part of the Nordic cooperation. But so far the countries’ prime ministers have not picked up on this, despite major infrastructure investments inside and between the countries.
- Creating synergies for life science cooperation in the Öresund Region
- Is a bridge enough to expand the common labour market in the Öresund region, or is more needed? The answer from Medicon Valley Alliances’ CEO is: We must also become better at identifying and using the factors that benefit both Denmark and Sweden and explore the potential of this.
- Labour market policies a challenge for Swedish government negotiations
- Labour market issues were overshadowed by crime, high energy prices and immigration in the run-up to the Swedish election. As the centre-right block tries to negotiate a government platform supported by the Sweden Democrats, unemployment and public health insurance might be among the political chess pieces.
- Parikkala goes for maids, whitefish and an unusual sculpture park
- There is an old saying that "the maids from Parikkala and the whitefish from Simpeljärvi are better than anywhere else". The maid is now a sculpture in the city centre while the whitefish is swimming in the lake. But a sculpture park with 255 concrete statues doing yoga is by far the biggest draw.
- Renewed drive to fight work-related crime in the Nordics
- All of the Nordics have intensified the fight against work-related crime. Norway’s new government has launched what it calls a spring clean of the Nordic labour market. Sweden’s deputy Minister for Employment Johan Danielsson has been tasked with coordinating the policy, and recently visited Oslo where he met his Norwegian colleague Marte Mjøs Persen.
- Nordics showed resilience during the pandemic
- The Nordic countries managed well economically during the pandemic in light of the massive changes that were undertaken. In four of the five countries, life expectancy rose. Denmark spent the most money while Norway did best overall while also experiencing a baby boom.
- Islands with their own point of view
- The Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland see the Nordic cooperation as a stepping stone to the outside world. But they also bring plurality to the Nordic table by enhancing awareness of different governance arrangements, peoples and their rights.
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