Göran Persson
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2008-07-07T21:22:09Z
194.144.69.20
: ''See [[Jöran Persson]] for the 16th century Swedish government official. See [[Göran Persson (born 1960)]] for the politician born in 1960.''
{{infobox Prime Minister
|name=Göran Persson
|order=31st [[Prime Minister of Sweden]]
| monarch = [[Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden|Carl XVI Gustaf]]
|image=Goran persson swedish pm election rally 2006-sept-05 gothenburg closeup img1.jpg
|term_start=[[March 22]], [[1996]]
|term_end=[[October 6]], [[2006]]
|predecessor=[[Ingvar Carlsson]]
|successor=[[Fredrik Reinfeldt]]
|deputy=[[Lena Hjelm-Wallén]] (1998–2002)<br>[[Margareta Winberg]] (2002–2003)<br>[[Marita Ulvskog]] (2003–2004)<br>[[Lars Engqvist]] (2004)<br>[[Bo Ringholm]] (2004–2006)<br>
|birth_date={{birth date and age|1949|01|20}}
|birth_place=[[Vingåker]], [[Södermanland County|Södermanland]]
|party=[[Swedish Social Democratic Party|Social Democratic]]
|spouse=Gunnel Claesson (div.)<br>Annika Barthine (div.)<br>[[Anitra Steen]]
|religion=[[Lutheranism|Lutheran]]/[[Church of Sweden]]
|alma_mater=[[Örebro University|Örebro University College]]
|residence=Övre Torp, Södermanland
|signature=Göran Persson signature.svg
}}
'''Hans Göran Persson''' ({{pronounced|ˈʝœːran ˈpæːʂɔn}} in Swedish) (born [[January 20]] [[1949]]) served as the thirty-first prime minister of Sweden (1996 – 2006). He was the leader of the [[Swedish Social Democratic Party]] and a member of the [[Riksdag]]. Conceding defeat in the [[Swedish general election, 2006|Swedish general election]] on [[September 17]], [[2006]], he announced that he would resign as party leader. At an extra Party Congress in [[March 17]], [[2007]] he was succeeded by [[Mona Sahlin]]. From August 2007 he is working as part time corporate lobbyist for the [http://www.jkl.se/default_com.asp JKL Group].
== Personal life ==
Persson was born in [[Vingåker]] in [[Södermanland]], [[Sweden]], in a working-class home. He has in recent years revealed that he wanted to become a priest as a young man;{{Fact|date=January 2007}} however, he applied to the college in [[Örebro]] where he took courses in social science. He completed 80 college credits (120 [[ECTS]] credits) in the subject before he gave them up in 1971 without graduating. According to himself he had at the time almost completed an education in social and political sciences.{{Fact|date=January 2007}} As the college later received credentials as a full university, the renamed [[Örebro University]] gave him an honorary PhD in medicine in February of 2005, an award that provoked some controversy.
In [[December 6]] [[2003]] Persson married [[Anitra Steen]], who became his third wife. He first married Gunnel (Claesson) in 1978, with whom he has two daughters. They divorced in 1995. On [[March 10]] [[1995]] he married [[Annika Barthine]], whom he divorced in December 2002.
In 2004 Persson and Steen purchased the 190 hectare agricultural property [[Övre Torp]] by Lake [[Båven]] in [[Södermanland]]. During 2006 the couple started the construction of a large house on the property.
He has maintained his Christian belief and is a member of [[Swedish Association of Christian Social Democrats]].
=== Health problems ===
Göran Persson was in a bicycle accident during his time as Prime Minister<ref>[http://www.aftonbladet.se/vss/nyheter/story/0,2789,185242,00.html Så här blir du frisk, Persson] {{sv icon}}, [[Aftonbladet]], June 4, 2004.</ref> and
in September 2003 Persson was diagonosed with hip [[osteoarthritis]] and surgery was recommended. He chose to go through Sweden's public health-care system instead of seeking private treatment; he was put on a waiting list, and finally received a [[hip replacement]] operation in June 2004. During that 9-month period he walked with a limp and reportedly was on strong [[painkiller]]s; he had to cancel several official trips due to the pain he was in.<ref>[http://www.tcsdaily.com/article.aspx?id=060404D His Hip, Hooray!] {{en icon}}, [[Tech Central Station|TCS Daily]], July 17, 2002.</ref>
== Political career ==
[[Image:1maj 085.jpg|200px|thumb|Prime Minister Göran Persson speaking at [[May Day]] event in 2006, at [[Norra Bantorget]] in Stockholm]]
Persson was in office for more than ten years, making him the second-longest continuously-governing prime minister of Sweden second to [[Tage Erlander]]. He is known for his oratorical prowess, often dispensing with prepared speeches or preparing them without the aid of his staff. During his time, he has faced several shocking incidents, such as the [[Protests during the EU summit in Gothenburg 2001|Gothenburg riots in 2001]], the 2003 murder of the [[Minister for Foreign Affairs (Sweden)|minister of foreign affairs]], [[Anna Lindh]], the [[2004 Indian Ocean earthquake|tsunami disaster]] in 2004, and the conflict over the publication of satirical [[Muhammed cartoons]] in Danish newspapers, leading to threats of violence against Scandinavians and burning of embassies in the Middle East and the resignation of Swedish Foreign Minister [[Laila Freivalds]].
In the early seventies he worked for the [[Swedish Social Democratic Youth League]] (''SSU''), and was a member of the national board from 1972 to 1975. Later, he served as a city council politician at the small [[Municipalities of Sweden|municipality]] of [[Katrineholm Municipality|Katrineholm]]. In 1979 he was elected Member of Parliament, but went back to local politics to serve as [[Municipal Commissioner]] (''kommunalråd'') of Katrineholm from 1985 to 1989.
=== National politics ===
In 1989 he was made Minister of Schools in the Ministry of Education during the first [[Ingvar Carlsson]] cabinet, until the [[Elections in Sweden|election]] in 1991 when the Social Democrats were voted out of office. Persson was one of the brains behind the "Persson-plan" which was presented in 1994 targeting the prevailing economic situation. Sweden at the time still suffered from the recession which began during the early nineties, high unemployment rates and a huge budget deficit. Prime minister [[Carl Bildt]] relied at the time on a fragile coalition between the [[Moderate Party]] and three other liberal or conservative parties with a strained degree of cooperation. The outcome of the 1994 election proved a success for the Social Democrats when they gained more than 45% of the votes.
Upon returning to government in 1994, Persson was made Minister for Finance, a post he held until 1996. As Minister of Finance much of his job was focused on attaining a sound financial balance in the economy. Persson often emphasizes that he "cleaned up" after the Bildt government.<ref>[http://www.riksdagen.se/Webbnav/index.aspx?nid=101&bet=2004/05:140&guid=%7B1285BE57-F835-4CD7-B169-B361F1462A64%7D Riksdagens protokoll 2004/05:140], Anf. 19, 15 juni 2004.</ref><ref>Göran Persson, [http://www.dn.se/DNet/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=572&a=577810&previousRenderType=2 "Ingen tillträdande regering har haft bättre förutsättningar"], DN Debatt, 5 oktober 2006.</ref>
=== Party leader and Prime Minister ===
In 1996 Persson was chosen over [[Mona Sahlin]], the Deputy Prime Minister, to lead the country after Carlsson retired. Persson began where he left off as finance minister - by continuing to spearhead government efforts to alleviate Sweden's chronic budget deficit. In 1994, the annual shortfall was about 13% of GDP. But, after implementing welfare cuts and tax increases, it fell to a projected 2.6% of GDP in 1997, which put Sweden in a position to qualify for the European economic and monetary union. However, the cost was high: [[unemployment]] rose, hovering persistently around 13%, then suddenly fell to about 6.5% the same year.
=== 1998 election ===
In the [[Sweden general election, 1998|1998 election]] the Social Democrats gained even fewer votes than in the [[Sweden general election, 1991|1991 election]], when they got voted out of office. Thanks to support that came primarily from the [[Green Party (Sweden)|Green]] and [[Left Party (Sweden)|Left]] parties, he managed to retain office but had to rely on support from at least two parties in the parliament. Two weeks after the election, one of the most sweeping [[Cabinet shuffle|cabinet reshuffle]]s in Swedish history took place, with eight ministers leaving their posts.{{Fact|date=January 2007}} Later the same year, the government announced proposals for far-reaching cutbacks in Sweden's military spending.
The year 1999 was seen by the Social Democrats as the vindication for the tough fiscal policies pursued since they came to office in 1994: GDP growth was estimated at about 3.6%, well above the European average, inflation remained subdued, and the budget was in surplus for the first time in the 1990s. The party proposed income tax cuts for 2000.
In 2000 a strong economy, falling unemployment, and the impact of the Internet appeared to breathe new life into the “Swedish model” of a welfare society, one that had seemed dead and buried during the deep recession of the early 1990s: growth reached 4%, and unemployment fell to the lowest level in years. The Social Democrats, however, failed to capitalize on the economic boom. Opinion polls showed the party struggling to return to its post-election 36% approval level. Instead, the smaller Left Party, a Social Democrat ally, picked up support with its program of increased public spending and opposition to Swedish membership in the European single currency.
Economically, the bursting of the [[dot-com boom]] by 2001 had marked implications for Sweden. Ericsson, the world's largest producer of mobile telecommunications equipment, shed thousands of jobs, as did the country's once fast-expanding Internet consulting firms and dot-com start-ups.
Gross domestic product growth of 3.6% in 2000 was expected to have fallen to around 1.5% in 2001, and only a minor recovery was forecast for 2002. The government was hoping that tax cuts, subsidies on child-care expenses, and wage increases would boost consumer confidence with real disposable income to increase by 5.4%. Exports were also expected to pick up in 2002, helped by the weakness of the Swedish krona, which hit record lows against both the dollar and the euro in 2001.
=== 2002 election ===
{{Expand-section|date=January 2007}}
In the [[Sweden general election, 2002|2002 election]] the Social Democrats increased their number of seats in the parliament primarily at the expense of the Left Party. Persson continued to lead a minority government instead of forming a coalition, despite earlier demands from his supporting parties to participate in the government.
=== 2006 election ===
{{Expand-section|date=January 2007}}
After the defeat at the [[Swedish general election, 2006|general elections]] of [[September 17]] [[2006]], Persson immediately filed a request for resignation, and declared his intentions to resign as party leader after a special party congress in March 2007.<ref>{{cite news|author=Bergman, Jonas|title=Swedish Opposition Ousts Social Democrats in Election (Update2)|work=Bloomberg.com|date=2006-09-17|url=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=aeOSxmGa.P3I|accessdate=2006-09-24}}</ref>
On April 13, 2007, Persson also announced his resignation from the [[Riksdag]] (where he had served 1974–1984 and from 1991) to be succeeded by [[Caroline Helmersson Olsson]] from his native [[Vingåker]].
=== 1996 - 2006 Foreign policy ===
[[Image:Bush Persson Prodi.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Göran Persson (in the middle) with [[George W. Bush]] and [[Romano Prodi]] at [[Gunnebo Slott]] near [[Gothenburg]], Sweden, [[June 14]], [[2001]].]]
In foreign policy Persson belongs to the right-wing of the Social Democrats.{{Fact|date=January 2007}} Among other things, he supported the [[War in Afghanistan (2001–present)|2001 United States invasion of Afghanistan]], because it was in line with the [[UN Security Council]]'s decision and because only military centers were to be targeted.{{Fact|date=January 2007}} However he protested against the [[2003 invasion of Iraq]], because it was not accepted by the [[UN]] and was seen as unnecessary aggression with a risk of high civilian casualties.{{Fact|date=January 2007}} Despite his differences with [[George W. Bush]], Persson has admitted that he is a "truly underestimated politician" in Europe, referring to Bush's abilities as a politician rather than his political views, and the fact that many Europeans see Bush as a less than gifted leader.{{Fact|date=January 2007}}
As regards Sweden's membership in the [[European Union]], Persson has been an advocate of an expanded Swedish role in the organization. During Sweden's presidency of the EU in the first half of 2001, Persson with assistance from foreign minister [[Anna Lindh]] presided over the organization and contributed towards the enlargement which took place in 2004.<ref>[http://archives.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/01/01/sweden.eu/index.html Sweden takes EU helm] {{en icon}}, [[CNN]], January 1, 2001.</ref><ref>[http://archives.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/01/02/sweden.eu/index.html Swedes offer EU breath of fresh air] {{en icon}}, [[CNN]], January 2, 2001.</ref> He advocated for a Swedish entry into the [[Economic and Monetary Union]] (EMU), however in a 2003 referendum a majority of Swedes voted against joining the EMU.<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/europe/09/14/sweden.euro/index.html Sweden rejects euro currency] {{en icon}}, [[CNN]], September 14, 2003.</ref><ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/europe/09/15/sweden.euro/index.html Sweden: Euro fallout feared] {{en icon}}, [[CNN]], September 15, 2003.</ref>
== After having left office ==
In October 2007, Persson released his memoirs, "Min väg, mina val" (My way, my choices).[http://www.svd.se/dynamiskt/inrikes/did_14387555.asp]
In March 2007 a documentary series consisting of four one-hour episodes aired on [[SVT]], chronicling Persson's time in office. The documentary became controversial due to Persson's negative comments about both his party members and staff and against his political opponents.
Persson left his seat in the Swedish parliament in April 2007. In May 2007 he announced that he will be working as a consultant for the Stockholm-based PR firm JKL in the future. In April 2008 he was installed as chairman of the board of [[Sveaskog]], a forestry business group owned by the Swedish government.
== References ==
{{reflist}}
{{Commons|Göran Persson}}
{{Wikiquote|Göran Persson}}
== External links ==
* [http://www.sweden.gov.se/sb/d/1158 Government Offices of Sweden - Göran Persson]
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{{s-bef|before=?}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Municipal Commissioner|Municipal Commissioner]] of [[Katrineholm Municipality|Katrineholm]]|years=1977–1979}}
{{s-aft|after=?}}
{{s-bef|before=?}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Municipal Commissioner|Municipal Commissioner]] of [[Katrineholm Municipality|Katrineholm]]|years=1985–1989}}
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{{s-bef|before=[[Bengt Göransson]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Minister for Schools]]|years=1989–1991}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Beatrice Ask]]}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Anne Wibble]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Finance Minister|Minister for Finance]]|years=1994–1996}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Erik Åsbrink]]}}
{{s-bef|rows=2|before=[[Ingvar Carlsson]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Prime Minister of Sweden]]|years=1996–2006}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Fredrik Reinfeldt]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Swedish Social Democratic Party|Leader of the Social Democratic Party]]|years=1996–2007}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Mona Sahlin]]}}
{{end}}
{{SwedishPrimeMinisters}}
<!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]] -->
{{Persondata
|NAME=Persson, Göran
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Persson, Hans Göran; Göran Persson i Stjärnhov
|SHORT DESCRIPTION=[[Sweden|Swedish]] [[politician]], [[Swedish Social Democratic Party]], thirty-second [[Prime minister of Sweden]]
|DATE OF BIRTH=[[January 20]] [[1949]]
|PLACE OF BIRTH=[[Vingåker]] [[Sweden]]
|DATE OF DEATH=
|PLACE OF DEATH=
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Persson, Goran}}
[[Category:1949 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Södermanland]]
[[Category:Municipal commissioners of Sweden]]
[[Category:Members of the parliament of Sweden]]
[[Category:Prime Ministers of Sweden]]
[[Category:Swedish Lutherans|Persson, Göran]]
[[Category:Swedish Ministers for Finance]]
[[Category:Swedish Ministers for Schools]]
[[Category:Leaders of the Swedish Social Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture and Forestry]]
[[Category:Örebro University alumni]]
[[Category:Swedish feminists]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Star of Romania Order]]
[[Category:Swedish memoirists]]
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