Denmark is getting a new government across traditional bloc boundaries. Acting Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced this in Copenhagen on Tuesday evening after weeks of negotiations. She informed Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II that this government would consist of her Social Democrats as well as the Liberal Conservative Party Venstre and the Liberal Moderates, she said.
Together with the other two party leaders Jakob Ellemann-Jensen and Lars Løkke Rasmussen, she will present the main lines of the government program on Wednesday and the new government, including the division of the ministerial posts, will be presented on Thursday.
Frederiksen has ruled Denmark since 2019 with a minority government made up entirely of her Social Democrats. Before the Danish parliamentary elections on November 1, however, she had announced that this time she would aim for a broad, centrist government. Such a government composition is extremely rare in Denmark. At the same time, after years of minority governments, Germany’s northernmost neighbor is getting a government with its own majority in parliament in Copenhagen.
Until now, Frederiksen and her social democrats have pushed for parliamentary majorities depending on the political measure. They had mainly cooperated with their traditionally left-wing camp, for example in the strict migration policy with parties from the conservative right-wing bloc.
New rules of the game in parliament
The rare majority government by Danish standards now means that the rules of the game in parliament are changing: compromises with parties outside the government are no longer absolutely necessary for a majority. Frederiksen claimed she would continue to try to find a broader majority.
The parties have been negotiating for more than six weeks on the formation of a new government at Frederiksen’s official residence in Marienborg, north of Copenhagen. Never before has this process taken so long in Denmark. However, over the course of the negotiations, it has become increasingly clear in recent weeks that Denmark is moving towards the broad government that Frederiksen wanted.
It wasn’t until Tuesday that the last remaining party from the left camp, the social-liberal radical Venstre, withdrew from the negotiations. The Social Democrats, Venstre and Moderate were the only ones left. The fact that Denmark is now getting such a government met with disappointment from left-wing parties.
It was radicals who led Frederiksen to call the elections early in the first place: the party had given her an ultimatum in the summer to bring the elections forward by months. This was linked to Frederiksen’s role in the Danish mink scandal, in which millions of minks were killed during the coronavirus pandemic. Only later did it become clear that there was no legal basis for this drastic step. An independent committee had strongly criticized Frederiksen and parts of her government, who had decided to mass cull the animals bred for fur production due to corona concerns. (saw/sda/dpa)
Soource :Watson
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
