Professor in political science Gunnar Helgi Kristinsson said the Social Democrat-Left-Green coalition has been weak for a long time; it has even been referred to as a minority government.
Inside the Icelandic parliament. Photo by Páll Kjartansson.
It is uncertain what impact the resignation of MPs Atli Gíslason and Lilja Mósesdóttir from the coalition yesterday will have on the government, he told RÚV.
The question is whether their resignation only weakens the coalition symbolically and for a short period of time or whether it will have a long-term impact, Kristinsson said.
That depends on how matters will progress within the Left-Green Movement, he reasoned, pointing out that it has been obvious for some time that other members of the party have also had doubts about various aspects of the coalition’s policy.
Kristinsson wonders what Left-Green MP Ásmundur Einar Dadason will do because he has often sided with Gíslason and Mósesdóttir. Their resignation might strengthen his position and that of other Left-Green members who have been critical of the coalition.
It appears as if the coalition is being held together by the sincere intention of the coalition leaders, Prime Minister Jóhanna Sigurdardóttir and Finance Minister Steingrímur J. Sigfússon, who are determined to continue with their cooperation, and therefore is not appealing for other parties to join the coalition, Kristinsson concluded.
The coalition now has a narrow majority in parliament, 33 MPs against the opposition’s 30.
Click here to read more about Gíslason and Mósesdóttir’s resignation.
