Despite significant differences of opinion over the European Union, the parties which comprise the ruling coalition – the Social Democrats and the Leftist-Greens – do not consider splitting up an option.
The government has been experiencing an extensive period of low levels of support. Last April, they had a combined level of support of 28%, according to Gallup. When the Independence Party and the Social Democrats were driven from power in the wake of popular protests in 2009, their level of support was at 26%.
With that continuing from the public side, differences within the coalition exist as well. Many Leftist-Greens believe the application for accession into the EU needs to be reviewed, while the Social Democrats favour continuing talks. This has created some rumours that a coalition split may be on the horizon.
Vísir reports that members of parliament from both parties that reporters spoke to have all said that at this time, breaking up the coalition is not an option.
While some prominent Leftist-Greens have spoken out against joining the EU – which was the original platform of the party, before forming its coalition with the Social Democrats – a split would not benefit either party at this time. Members of parliament reporters spoke to cited low support numbers as one of the major reasons for the coalition sticking together – a split would likely damage the support for both.
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