The Nordic countries: The next supermodel | The Economist http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/ XXXXXXXXXXpoliticians-both-right... The Nordic countries The next supermodel Politicians from both right and left could learn from the Nordic countries Feb 2nd 2013 |From the print edition SMALLISH countries are often in the vanguard when it comes to reforming government. In the 1980s Britain was out in the lead, thanks to Thatcherism and privatisation. Tiny Singapore has long been a role model for many reformers. Now the Nordic countries are likely to assume a similar role. That is partly because the four main Nordics—Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland—are doing rather well. If you had to be reborn anywhere in the world as a person with average talents and income, you would want to be a Viking. The Nordics cluster at the top of league tables of everything from economic competitiveness to social health to happiness. They have avoided both southern Europe’s economic sclerosis and America’s extreme inequality. Development theorists have taken to calling successful modernisation “getting to Denmark”. Meanwhile a region that was once synonymous with do-it-yourself furniture and Abba has even become a cultural haven, home to “The Killing”, Noma and “Angry Birds”. In this section Reprints Related topics As our special report this week explains, some of this is down to lucky timing: the Nordics cleverly managed to have their debt crisis in the 1990s. But the second reason why the Nordic model is in vogue is more interesting. To 1 of 2 2/5/2013 7:58 AMThe Nordic countries: The next supermodel | The Economist http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/ XXXXXXXXXXpoliticians-both-right... politicians around the world—especially in the debt-ridden West—they offer a blueprint of how to reform the public sector, making the state far more efficient and responsive. From Pippi Longstocking to private schools The idea of lean Nordic government will come as a shock both to French leftists who...
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