The Oxford Handbook of Danish Politics

Description

This is the most comprehensive and thorough English language book on Danish politics ever. It is written by fifty authors, each of whom is an expert in and has contributed to the field that they write about. And why is Denmark an interesting topic for a handbook? In some respects, Danish political institutions and political life are similar to that of other small, North European countries such as the other Scandinavian countries and The Netherlands. However, in other respects, Danish politics is interesting in its own right. For instance, Denmark has a world record in minority governments. According to standard scholarly knowledge, this should result in unstable governments and a bad economy. This is not the case, however, since Denmark has a rather stable political system and a strong and robust economy among the strongest in Europe. The Danes have continued reservations towards the EU despite close to 50 years of EC/EU membership, and the Danes rejected the Maastricht Treaty in 1992. Still, the EU issue is handled in ways that do not call for large political battles. Also Denmark used to be known as a tolerant and liberal society; its Jews were almost all saved during the German occupation of the Second World War; it was the first country to legalize pornography and formally register same-sex couples. Yet recent Danish politics has also been associated with xenophobia and anti-Muslim sentiments. The handbook provides the reader with a detailed knowledge and understanding of almost all aspects of Danish politics. 1. Introduction: Why a Book on Danish Politics?, Peter Munk Christiansen, Jørgen Elklit, and Peter Nedergaard Part 1: POLITY 2. The Constitution, Jens Peter Christensen 3. Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and Denmark: Unity or Community?, Ulrik Pram Gad 4. The Monarch: Head of State and National Symbol, Jes Fabricius Møller 5. The Electoral System: Fair and Well-Functioning, Jørgen Elklit 6. Electoral Turnouts: Strong Social Norms of Voting, Kasper Møller Hansen 7. The Parliament (Folketinget), Helene Helboe Pedersen 8. The Government and the Prime Minister: More Than Primus Inter Pares?, Martin Ejnar Hansen 9. Organizing Central Government: A Pragmatic Meritocracy?, Caroline Howard Grøn and Heidi Houlberg Salomonsen 10. Municipalities and Regions: Approaching the Limit of Decentralization?, Kurt Houlberg and Niels Ejersbo 11. Corporatism: Exaggerated Death Rumours?, Peter Munk Christiansen 12. Corruption and Bureaucratic Reforms: 'Getting to Denmark'?, Mette Frisk Jensen and Gert Tinggaard Svendsen 13. Coordination for the European Union: A Strong and Stable Institution, Mads Dagnis Jensen and Peter Nedergaard Part 2: POLITICS 14. Party System: Open yet Stable, Christoffer Green-Pedersen and Karina Kosiara-Pedersen 15. Governments in Action: Consensual Politics and Minority Governments, Christoffer Green-Pedersen and Asbjørn Skjæveland 16. Classes and Politics: A Changing Relationship, Gitte Sommer Harrits and Rune Stubager 17. Danish Public Opinion: Stability, Change and Polarization, Peter Thisted Dinesen, Rune Slothuus, and Rune Stubager 18. The Social Democratic Party: From Exponent of Societal Change to Pragmatic Conservatism, Rasmus Mariager and Niels Wium Olesen 19. The Liberal Party: From Agrarian and Liberal to Centre-Right Catch-All, Flemming Juul Christiansen 20. The Danish People's Party: Centre Oriented Populists?, Karina Kosiara-Pedersen 21. The Red-Green Alliance: Is it Red or Green?, Henrik Bech Seeberg and Ann-Kristin Kölln 22. Dynamic Stability: The Anchors of Voting Behaviour, Kasper Møller Hansen and Rune Stubager 23. Gender and Politics: The Limits of Equality Politics, Christina Fiig and Birte Siim 24. Local Elections: Localized Voting Within a Nationalized Party System, Ulrik Kjær 25. Referenda in Denmark: Influence on Politics, Derek Beach 26. Media and Politics: The Danish Media System in Transformation?, Thomas Olesen 27. Interest Groups: A Democratic Necessity and a Necessary Evil, Anne Skorkjær Binderkrantz Part 3: POLICIES 28. In War and Peace: Security and Defence Policy in a Small State, Anders Wivel 29. Foreign Policy: New Directions in a Changing World Order?, Henrik Larsen 30. Danish European Union Policies: Sailing Between Economic Benefits and Political Sovereignty, Mads Dagnis Jensen and Peter Nedergaard 31. Development Policy: From Consensus to Contention?, Anne Mette Kjær 32. Economic Policy: From Disequilibrium to Flexicurity, Torben M. Andersen 33. Welfare State Policies: From the Beginning towards an End?, Klaus Petersen 34. The Danish Labour Market Model: Is the Bumblebee Still Flying?, Laust Høgedahl 35. Education Policy: Power, Conflict, and Cooperation, Susanne Wiborg 36. Health Policy: The Submerged Politics of Free and Equal Access , Lars Thorup Larsen 37. Immigration and Immigrant Integration Policy: Public Opinion or Party Politics?, Kristina Bakkær Simonsen 38. Agricultural and Fisheries Policy: Towards Market Liberalism, Carsten Daugbjerg, Peder Andersen, Henning Otto Hansen, and Brian H. Jacobsen 39. Environmental, Energy, and Climate Policy: From Energy Supply to Climate Gasses, Peter Birch Sørensen 40. Research Policy: The Strength of Transformation, Kaare Aagaard and Niels Mejlgaard 41. Polity, Politics, and Policies: A Reconsideration, Peter Munk Christiansen, Jørgen Elklit, and Peter Nedergaard