Replace the Swedish Krona with Euro NOW!
Sweden is one of the EU-countries that have not replaced the national currency with Euro. The reason is that we had a referendum on the issue. It was badly wrong to arrange a referendum for three reasons.
1: Referendums tend with very few exceptions to end up in a NO to changes and work as a conseravtive force. 2: We have a representative democracy with elected praliamentarians who have committees and experts at hand to prepare decisions based on well founded facts and background information as well as consequence analyses. Why shall we make the parliamentarians to act against their own convictions? (A vast majority of MP:s were in favour of joining in) 3: Voting behaviour tend to be guided by other considerations than the topical issue, such as for example demonstrations agingst the ruling party.
What happened in the referendum was that irrelevant sentiments played a big role. People have a sentimental liking of the national currency. Isolationist/nationalist forces (in Sweden connected to the leftists), made a campain to present a YES attitude as the opinion of the elites and a NO vote as the people´sresistance. How wrong they were. Anybody who has lived in a country with a marginalized currency knows that who suffers most from it are common people and poor people. The economic elites have reserves or at least access to other currences wether legally or illegally. I happened to live in Sri Lanka at the time for the campaign and the Lankese had good laughs when I talked about the coming referendum. They just wondered if anybody would vote NOto the opportunity to get their salary in a fully convertible, international strong currency instead of in a marginal national currency. Who could be so stupid to say no thanks to such an offer. But Swedish people had a far too strong self esteem when it came to creed in the Krona. Some people said: We know what we have but not what we get. Totally wrong. We knew quite for sure that the Euro had turned a success and became strong and nobody could forsee what a such marginal currency as the Krona would become in the future. So we knew what we would get but not what we had.
Now we know. The Krona has become week. Had we joined from the beginning, the Krona would have been fixed at 8,70 to a Euro. Now we have to pay 9,80 for a Euro and it will soon cost more than ten Kroner. This happens even though the real economy and the growth in Sweden is higher than in the Euro area. The reason is simply that it is a small and mariginalized curreency and as such less attractive. Those who suffer lower standard of living beceause of higher prizes for all imported goods and a relativly lowered salary in comparison to other European countries with more than 10% , is not the elites. The victims are common people.
What should be done before the Krona slides even more downhills? The Government should take immedeate action to forward a bill to Parliament proposing an immediate application to EU to join into the Euro area. The referendum was, by constitution, not binding but an advice. Therefore, it is constitutionally correct to act against a five year old referendum result. The situation has changed and the Krona slided more downhills than anybody had foreseen. So please dear Government. ACT NOW. Let us get rid of the downsliding Krona and have the strong Euro. By the way, take a look at our previously much poorer neigbour, FInland. They joined in and the counjtry is becoming one of the most prosperous in Europe (not only beceause of joining the Euro but that in combination with other factors).
