OECD Peer Review of E-Government in Denmark - ePractice.eu

ANNEX B: INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXT AND PUBLIC GOVERNANCE ARRANGEMENTS
Constitutional environment
United into a single kingdom at the end of the 10th century, and an independent nation ever since,
Denmark is a constitutional monarchy with a unicameral system of parliamentary government. The
monarch (currently Queen Margrethe II) is the Head of State and heads the Government, but has no
political power and performs only formal and ceremonial functions. Executive power is vested in the
government, which consists of ministers under the leadership of the Prime Minister. The monarch has
the prerogative (based on recommendations from the Prime Minister) to appoint and dismiss ministers
and to decide the delegation and distribution of duties among ministers.
Ministers are responsible for all actions of the ministries over which they have control. There is
no constitutional convention of collective ministerial responsibility. The prerogatives of the
Government are guaranteed by the Danish Constitution and cannot be interfered with by the
Parliament. However, specific acts of government, (especially those concerning foreign policy) require
the consent of the Parliament.
Legislative power rests with the Government and the Parliament (the Folketing) conjointly. The
Parliament consists of 179 members, two of whom are elected in Greenland and two in the Faroe
Islands. The members of the Folketing are elected for four-year terms.
The Constitution provides for separation of judicial and executive powers. The monarch appoints
judges; in contrast to other state-appointed employees, judges cannot be dismissed on the basis of an
administrative decision, but may only be dismissed by way of court judgement.
Denmark is a member of the European Union. In 1992, Danes voted against the Maastricht
Treaty, which proposed monetary union and a common European defence force, and the country was
granted opt-outs from these provisions (among others). In a referendum held in September 2000,
Danes voted against the adoption of the Euro.
Political environment
The Danish political system is a multi-party structure with several parties represented in the
Parliament. Danish governments are most often minority administrations, governing in coalition with
one or more supporting parties. Danish politics is therefore characterised by inter-party compromise.
Since 1909, no single party has held the majority of seats in Parliament. The Social Democrat and
Liberal parties have each led a number of coalition governments during the 20 th century. Since
November 2001, a Liberal-led coalition has been in power.
The system is characterised by a culture of compromise and consensus between the political
players, and there are good opportunities for broad popular participation in political processes at the
national and local levels through membership in the political parties, interest groups, user committees
and various organisations and associations. Danish counties and municipalities have a high degree of
political autonomy – for example, they have their own elections and regional administrations.
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