Scandinavia: Economic and Social Studies (Western Europe Economic and Social Studies series) Book

Scandinavia’s distinctive combination of entrepreneurial capitalism, a large public welfare sector and policies favouring equality of opportunity, form the background to this book. Norway, Sweden and Denmark have developed very prosperous societies since 1945 by consistently pursuing social democratic consensus policies of a type long out of favour in the 'Thatcherite' English-speaking developed countries. The authors analyze the reactions of successive Scandinavian governments to problems associated with the adaptation of Scandinavian industry to the internationalization of production, regional inequalities, unemployment and rural depopulation, a large and growing service sector, and immigration. The future provision of energy and the consequences of the fading away of the superpowers’ Cold War are assessed. The prospects for Scandinavia of a full internal market in the European Community after 1992 are examined, with particular regard to Norway’s and Sweden’s non-EC membership. Differences in the policies followed by Norway, Sweden and Denmark are discussed in relation to their resources and historical experiences.Read More