19/09/2006 11:39:28 am
FT International Affairs Blog About My Analysis. At the Financial Times International Affairs Blog, Gideon Rachman writes about the international attention around the Swedish election. He points out that the so-called "Nordic Model" has attracted a lot of attention. Clearly, he sees the election as an opportunity for change in Sweden in a free-market direction:

"What is more, the defeat of the Persson government clearly centred around an argument about the sustainability of the Swedish social system. The centre-right alliance led by Fredrik Reinfeldt, which won the election, campaigned against high taxes and high hidden unemployment among the young. It also stressed the growing burden of the welfare state in an ageing society ? a challenge that the whole of Europe is going to have to face up to soon. A recent Wall Street Journal article by Johnny Munkhammar, director of a free-market think-tank in Sweden, gives a flavour of their critique.

This being Sweden, we are not talking about a full-scale counter-revolution. Mr Reinfeldt′s party are, after all, called the Moderates. But equally one shouldn′t under-estimate the significance of a party winning an election in Sweden on a platform that promises tax cuts and privatisation.

There are also people in Sweden who will want to go for really radical free-market reforms. The small band of Swedish libertarians and free-marketeers are often strikingly bold in their arguments ? perhaps because they feel so embattled in a society where the state is so large and so overbearing. Mr Munkhammer, for example, makes clear he regards the electoral promises of Mr Reinfeldt as only a first step. If Sweden′s free marketers gain in influence, things could really get interesting."

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