Moderate policies close to kill off the Liberals

"Moderate policies close to kill off the Liberals"

"Bengt Westerberg: the Next leader must form the front in two directions – right and left -"

"This is an opinion piece. It is the writer who stands for the views that are put forward in the text, not Against."

"the DEBATE. The liberals will choose a new party leader. Personvalet is important, but more important now is the political choice. "

"I who am writing this, has himself been leader of the Liberals (then liberal Party). L is currently in a critical location. I would like to share with you some comments, but I do it in the greatest humility faced with the difficult task I by own experience know that the party is facing. I still want to believe that there is a need and space for a socialliberalt party. "

"One of my predecessors, Gunnar Helén, once said, ”to be liberal is to be forked”. The expression is taken sometimes to mean that liberals would have a hard time to decide. But what he pointed out was something else entirely: ”To be liberal is to be against a sort of people defend it as the next day must attack the of another. It may not be easy for someone to be an honest liberal. It costs that in almost every cultural and social issue form the front in two directions and in addition make sure that the two front lines come to a sustainable whole.”"

"this approach has traditionally given us, after a place in the middle of american politics, necessitating a readiness to battle, but also to the interaction, with both the right and the left."

"In recent years has the position been weakened. The party has chosen a clear högerposition. It has allianssamverkan since 2004 has helped, but also, according to the party's own election assessment statement, the stated ambition to take voters mainly from M. "

"It was no coincidence that Jan Björklund in last year's partiledarutfrågning himself placed the party to the right of the M. The position has scared away many of the more left-wing liberals. "

"After the party since after the elections in regeringsfrågan returned to the centre position to prevent SD from gaining influence, many of the newly acquired, more moderatorienterade, voters are disappointed and the rates have, not surprisingly, reached record low levels."

"It seems to be divided on which is now to be the party of more long-term choices. "

"part mean that the Alliance should urgently be recovered (even if it right now feels far away) and early to make it clear that the goal by 2022 is again a alliansregering. "

"I am personally convinced that it would be devastating for the Liberals. Allianssamverkan under moderate management has been close to kill off the party. The experience is also not particularly good from the interaction with M, which, when I headed the party, took place before the elections in 1991. "

"I think, in short, that L will lose that lock themselves in the interaction with M, but the result could very well be the same if the party ties up for a corresponding interaction with S."

"For L to have a raison d'être, it is of the greatest importance to the claim of the independent stance that Gunnar Helén talked about even if it ”costs that in almost every cultural and social issue form the front in two directions” and, moreover, that it must ”ensure that the two front lines come to a sustainable whole”. "

"the centre position means that the refusal to choose between a högerposition which assumes that lower taxes are always good, that the public welfare is only for the poor and that peace and order can best be achieved with stiffer penalties, and a vänsterposition which assumes that the state always knows best, that the entrepreneur maximizes the profits without bothering about the consequences, and that the collective is more important than the individual."

"Let me give a concrete example of what that position can lead to. In a Demoskop survey some years ago asked the question what the Swedish model stands for today. "

"In the first place was that schools and welfare is financed by taxes and on the other the right to choose the school and medical center. The citizens appreciate the obviously, the combination of tax-funded welfare and freedom of choice. "

"But if the right decision had been ours, we had less of the public welfare and if the left had been determined less freedom of choice. The basis of this ”new Swedish model” was added in the years around 1990 and is a result of the Liberal middle position and readiness for both combat and interaction. "

"the Right and the left cling to their positions than in the day. But the Liberals falters. In its ambition to compete with the M, it has rather been talking about tax cuts than the need of resources in the welfare system. "

"You have not shown any particular concern about the increasing economic inequality in Sweden. In the alliance government contributed to the erosion of the social insurance who have contributed to the increased inequality. "

"A consistent return to the middle position on the högeru002Fvänsterskalan in politics is of strategic importance. But in recent years also has a new dimension gained importance in the policy. "

"This is the fight for liberal values mainly towards SD and, increasingly, KD. It's about the things that cultural freedom and diversity, refugee policy, religious freedom and gender equality. Especially the SD perceives clearly that it is liberalism, in the broad sense, which is their chief enemy. "

"L have been firm in their principled opposition to the SD, but too quiet in the ideological issues separating the parties. "

the "L's group leader in parliament, Christer Nylander, wrote, unfortunately, long after the election, an excellent article about the culture (SvD 181215). It showed that he has the right compass. "

"In a couple of the other issues, the party has abandoned the earlier liberal positions and created uncertainty:"

"There is tough competition in politics and always only 100%. "

"Surely it is only a minority who is prepared to support a combination of high taxes to finance a high-quality welfare, choice in welfare, cultural policies for diversity, PUT option for the immigrants who are allowed to remain here and individualisation of the parental insurance. "

"But I want to believe that the minority is large enough to be represented in parliament. It is the I mean that the Liberals must aim to represent."

"nBengt Westerberg, party leader (L) 1983-1995"

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