Financial crisis's effects: Iceland's election goes to Left

[Tiriol]

Meanwhile, in Iceland, left-centre coalition wins the parliamentary elections and for the first time in history, holds a majority; as reported by BBC.

Centre-left wins Iceland election
Ms Sigurdardottir said Icelanders had called for a "change of ethics"

Iceland's interim centre-left government has won a resounding victory in early parliamentary elections, preliminary results show.

With more than 80% of the vote counted, the coalition secured 34 seats in the 63-member parliament - its first ever parliamentary majority.

Iceland has been one of the countries most dramatically affected by the global economic crisis.

The centre-right cabinet resigned in January amid mass street protests.

The Social Democratic Alliance and the Left Green Movement formed a coalition caretaker government in February, under Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir.

Ms Sigurdardottir said if the results of Saturday's poll were correct it would be "historic".

"This is the first time that leftist parties will hold a majority. I hope this will be the result," she said.

Ms Sigurdardottir told supporters the nation was "settling the score with the neoliberalism" and with the conservative Independence Party who "have been in power for much too long".

"The people are calling for a change of ethics. That is why they have voted for us," she said.

The Independence party, who was expected to secure 16 seats, conceded defeat.

Its leader Bjarni Benediktsson said it was clear that his party had lost the trust of voters.

"We lost this time but we will win again later," he said.

EU debate

The small North Atlantic nation has a population of only 300,000.

But it had to take a $10bn (£6.8bn) rescue package, led by the International Monetary Fund, after its banking sector imploded late last year.

The next government will face many challenges, centred around the economy, the BBC's Nicholas Walton says.

It needs rebuilding, with financial services no longer at its core. Unemployment and the government's ruined finances also need attention, our correspondent says.

There is also the question of whether or not to apply to join the European Union.

In the past, Icelanders felt that they were better off outside the EU.

But the financial crisis has changed opinions, our correspondent says. Now, many see EU membership or adopting the Euro as Iceland's currency, as part of the solution to the country's problems.

Pro-EU Ms Sigurdardottir said if the country applied immediately for membership it could begin using the Euro "within four years".

However, the Left Green Movement - Ms Sigurdardottir's coalition partner - remains eurosceptic.

Iceland's situation has been very prominently at display in the Nordic countries and my university has even held entire seminars about it. It is no wonder that Icelanders have been fed up with their more right-wing leaning government and the way they have handled Iceland's economy. However, I do hope they don't think that the left-centre coalition can magically change everything immediately.

[CJvR]

The Icelandic main problem is that there isn't enough fish in the Atlantic for them to catch even if they found someone to loan them the money for the boats needed. It hardly matters what color the goverment is when the nation are in debt for several generations...

[cosmicalstorm]

Yeah their current debt is something like 300.000€/citizen, thats fucking crazy.

I wonder how they will solve that problem.

[bobalot]

The Libertarian leaning Independence party and its policies crashes and burns along with Icelands economy. What a defining moment.

[bobalot]

Photographs of bankers who left Iceland after the financial crisis have a new use in the restroom of a bar in Reykjavik, the capital.
(Source)

[[R_H]]

Yeah their current debt is something like 300.000€/citizen, thats fucking crazy.

I wonder how they will solve that problem.

Doesn't the new government want to join the EU?

[Dartzap]

Some Icelandic fishermen have become so desperate for somewhere to sell their catches, they have been sailing all the way to Yorkshire to do it. Its ironic, in a very depressing way, but such is life.

I wouldnt be surprised if the role what the UK government had in the nationalising of some of the Icelandic assets will come under scrutiny at some point, it was odd at the time, and it'll be considerd odd for longer too.

[CJvR]

Doesn't the new government want to join the EU?

When you are drowning you reach for anything that will keep you afloat. Short of finding a huge oilfield in Iceland nothing can prevent the next few generations from going down for the economic count.

[[R_H]]

Doesn't the new government want to join the EU?

When you are drowning you reach for anything that will keep you afloat. Short of finding a huge oilfield in Iceland nothing can prevent the next few generations from going down for the economic count.

Well I doubt they'll be making it into the EU anytime soon, with the crisis in the new member states and all.

[CJvR]

Probably not. But the Icelandic meltdown isn't that big when one considers the other messes around the world. It is just that there are so few icelanders, about 300000, to pick up the pieces making the per-capita burden on them absurd.