Why Active State Measures Have Dominated Regional Policies in Norway by Governments of all Colours: A Historical Review and Comparison with Sweden

• Published in: Arctic Review on Law and Politics
• Main Author: Geir Tufte
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; Norwegian
• Published: Cappelen Damm Akademisk NOASP 2023
• Subjects: geography; geopolitical position; social democratic and bourgeois governments; centre-periphery political cleavage; Law; K; Bourgeois; Norway; Arctic; Arctic review on law and politics; Northern Sweden
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.23865/arctic.v14.5090; https://doaj.org/article/1fd29fdc20374f7196e1cd5c461e6dbf

This article compares regional policies in Norway to regional policies in Sweden. The article suggests that geographical and geopolitical factors are the main factors that have influenced regional policies. The article points out that the government in Sweden, immediately following WW2, also assumed the role of the active state. However, in contrast to Norway, its policies were disadvantageous to northern Sweden. Later, Swedish governments also implemented policies aimed at strengthening the economic and social conditions in the north.