From Iceland — Social Dem MP Says No to Coalition with Conservatives

Social Dem MP Says No to Coalition with Conservatives

Published September 24, 2010

Social Democrat MP Ólína Þorvarðardóttir has responded with a resounding “no” to the idea recently brought up that her party and the Independence Party renew their coalition.
As reported, the Prime Minister’s recent remarks that she had doubts about charging four former ministers with negligence and mismanagement has led to murmurs of new elections, or even a new coalition, as numerous MPs from within the Leftist-Greens have voiced both surprise and disappointment with her remarks. Conservative chairman Bjarni Benediktsson told television station Stöð 2 that he was “absolutely” ready to form a coalition with the Social Democrats – the same coalition that was driven from power in the wake of popular protests in early 2009.
Writing on Smugan, Ólína quite bluntly stated that the Independence Party “has no business in government”, and that they need “a very long break from power”. She contends that the task facing the present coalition is enormous, and that it’s one the conservatives shouldn’t come anywhere near.
Ólína points out that there are of course differences of opinion between her party and the Leftist-Greens, but this doesn’t change their shared priorities in repairing the economy.
“If there is one thing we’ve learned from how government was run in 2008, it’s that the Independence Party has no business in government,” she says in part. “Most if not all MPs for the Social Democrats are dedicated to finishing the task we have before us. Now that the most difficult part is out of the way, [the conservatives] want to come back to power. This is so the conservatives can claim all the good work of this government and prevent anyone from being charged. Everyone sees right through this. There is no substantial logic for such a partnership.”
(Photo: onlinathorv.blog.is)

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