There is a flourishing informal group of professionals in Scotland meeting periodically to explore the 'Nordic Mode'; whatever it is that consistently places Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and sometimes Iceland close to the top of international league tables for well-being, equality, health and productivity.  The series of meetings is exploring different aspects of social policy in the Nordic countries, with a view to see what might be learnt and borrowed for policy development in Scotland in particular, but in the UK more widely.  The group's discussions, which include decision-makers, members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs), academics, local government and a wide variety of people drawn from across civic Scotland, take a new significance in the context of wider debates about governance in the UK and Scotland in moving towards more localism and local empowerment, and of Scottish independence.

I attended the most recent meeting on 'McKommunes' - which explored a whole range of issues about local government, drawing its inspiration from nordic experience with relatively small municipalities (by Scottish standards), which are seen as successfully bringing participation in local democracy closer to communities, and fostering a degree of innovation in service provision and the development of local solutions to community issues.  The meeting heard some introductory papers from 2 academics and 2 MSPs, which stimulated a lively discussion about the nature of the powers and responsibility placed at different levels of government,  cultural issues about expectations and participation in community action and local politics.  The discussion highlighted the many dilemmas which are perceived between democracy and efficiency in service provision,  between demands for consistent standards in provision and for local service solutions, and for the development of trust between different levels of government in the use of resources, the management of risk, and accountability.  There were pleas for greater use in Scotland of powers of general competence in local government to foster innovation and a more entrepreneurial approach building on the knowledge and skills available within communities.  

Recordings of the proceedings of the discussion are on the group's website.

You can find the background paper from Professor Mike Danson, University of the West of Scotland, here

Clearly the issues arising here have been seen in different contexts in the PURE study and in other aspects of PASCAL's work.  It would be very useful if some of this experience can be linked to the group.  As a starter, I wonder how our colleagues from Nordic countries  respond to points made in the meeting.

The next meeting is concerned with the public participatory process used in developing the new Icelandic constitution.