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The Work of Civil Servants in Denmark · Diplomacy and International Relations

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  Welcome back to Diplomacy and International Relations by
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  Bastian Fribourg. A quick reminder, this podcast
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  is AI generated and fact checked by Bastian Fribourg.
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  Today we're going deep into Danish politics, the embeds
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  Burke. They're the civil servants
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  behind the scenes, keeping the government running.
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  What's fascinating is they're right between politics and
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  administration. Yeah, they're the expertise they
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  provide the continuity governments need, but it's a
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  demanding political environment. It's a tightrope walk, isn't it?
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  Yes, they got to respond to the elected officials, the ministers
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  setting the agenda, but also uphold democratic values, give
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  impartial advice and push back against pressure sometimes.
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  Exactly. It's that tension, that balance
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  that we're diving into today. OK?
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  Can they stay independent with that pressure?
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  We'll look at sort of purse belay being scapegoats when
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  things go wrong and they serve the people in this complex
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  Danish system. To help us, we're looking at
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  Jurgen Gronigord Christensen, yes, big name in Danish
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  political science. His book Embeds Folk, looks at
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  the embeds Virk's history, but also these modern challenges.
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  What's interesting is he's both criticized and defended them.
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  He's pointed out. Or they went too far, but also
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  fiercely defended their professionalism and commitment
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  to democracy. Like the scat case, yes, he said
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  they had too much power overshadowing politicians.
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  But now he's softened, right? He's more nuanced.
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  It might be because he recently chaired the expert group on
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  COVID lockdowns. Oh wow, first hand look at their
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  pressures. So what's the biggest
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  misconception he sees now about them?
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  He says people think they're too political, like an extension of
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  the ruling party. And that, he says, threatens the
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  rule of law and democracy. That's a serious claim, but he
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  backs it up. Yes, he really emphasizes their
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  commitment to democratic values, legality, truthfulness,
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  professional expertise, and importantly, certainly
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  neutrality. More pressure, Sure, but they're
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  holding firm. He's not saying there haven't
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  been bad cases though, right? Stordberg, Tibet, the mink
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  scandal, those all raised concerns about their judgement,
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  their independence. He tackles those directly.
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  He calls them serious missteps. Mug Sogger, but exceptions, not
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  the rule. Don't judge them all based on
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  these. So mistakes made, but overall
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  committed to their values. Still, the pressure is
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  undeniable. Why?
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  It's the minister's style now much more assertive in their
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  mandate, not just rubber stamping advice.
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  They come in with their own agendas, their own calculations.
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  It's a different dynamic. It demands more.
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  They need to push back, offer critical analysis even if it's
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  not what the minister wants, not.
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  Be obstructionist, but not yes men either.
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  Exactly. And that's where Barbara
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  Bertelsen comes. OK, head of the Department of
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  the Prime Minister. She really shows this assertive
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  advising. She's been in the spotlight,
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  especially after COVID and the mink scandal.
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  Yeah, those really put her front and center.
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  Lots of debate about her actions, but one thing's clear.
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  What's that? Her philosophy is the embeds
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  work must give critical counter pressure.
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  So not just presenting options, but the risks, the unintended
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  consequences really makes them think.
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  Exactly. But even then, can they be truly
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  independent, truly experts? One issue is how short
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  department heads 10 years are these days.
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  Does that impact their expertise, their ability to keep
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  things consistent? It's a.
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  Valid concern. You need institutional memory,
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  deep understanding to give truly insightful advice.
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  Constant change makes that hard. And then there's this No
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  surprises rule unwritten, but it seems to guide them.
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  What does that mean? How could it be a problem?
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  It means they try to avoid shocks, scandals that embarrass
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  the government, disrupt things, anticipate problems, smooth
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  things over, keep it all running smoothly.
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  Sounds reasonable, but doesn't that mean downplaying risks not
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  raising uncomfortable? Truths.
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  Exactly. That's the problem.
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  It creates risk aversion. People hesitate to speak up,
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  challenge, offer different views.
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  And that feeds into the whole sort of perspirit, right?
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  They become scapegoats when things inevitably go wrong.
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  Precisely The elbows organ, for example.
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  Allegations were that intense political pressure led to rushed
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  arms purchases. But when it went bad, who got
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  blamed? The civil servants, yes, So they
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  have to avoid surprises, keep ministers happy, but also give
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  impartial expert advice, even if it's critical.
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  Tough spot. It is.
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  Does it mean they can't be a check on power?
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  A guardian of democracy. But there's some good news
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  amidst all this. Oh, what's?
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  That the Dibvad Udvalja, the committee looking at
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  politicians, civil servants and media, found public trust in the
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  embeds work has gone UP really from 37% in 2016 to 46% now.
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  Wow, that's a big jump. Why?
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  The report says a few things. One the embeds work has lots of
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  expertise, legal, educational, procedural and that's essential
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  for good governance. So people are seeing their value
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  even if they don't always agree with their decisions.
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  It seems so. But the report also knows the
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  challenge. It says there needs to be
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  balance responding to politics while keeping integrity.
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  The. Classic dilemma.
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  Sir Humphrey versus the Hand Langer.
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  Wise advisor, not a puppet. Exactly.
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  So what does politicizing mean? Can advice ever be truly
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  neutral? Good question.
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  Even in economics there's interpretation, right?
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  Experts disagree on a policies impact based on their own views,
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  their assumptions. Absolutely.
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  Data is one thing, but judgement calls are involved and those can
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  be swayed by personal values, political leanings.
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  Add in not wanting to be the sore tipper lines get blurry.
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  And the Dib Badu Vinette found 16% of embeds folk admit to
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  sometimes giving advice for partisan reasons.
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  Blurrying isn't. It shows the pressure is real,
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  affecting how some do their jobs.
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  And we can't ignore the media here.
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  They shape how the public sees the embeds vac and they love a
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  good scandal, right? The report said. 41% of embeds
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  folk think the media gets it wrong.
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  Focuses on the sensational stuff, not the everyday work.
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  Yeah, that's true. Media has got to hold people
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  accountable, but it can distort things too.
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  Sensationalism sells, but isn't always accurate.
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  So how do we balance this? They got to be in tune with the
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  political climate, the ministers, but also give
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  objective advice. Even if it's unpopular, it goes
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  against the agenda. That's the big question.
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  It comes down to trust, doesn't it?
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  Can we trust them to handle this?
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  Uphold democracy. Truly serve the people.
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  The report says public trust is going up, which is good, but
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  like we said, there are still challenges, things to watch out
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  for. For sure can't be complacent.
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  We've got to hold them accountable, demand
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  transparency, make sure they've got the space to give
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  independent expert advice. That's on all of us.
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  Citizens, journalists, policy makers.
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  We got to be informed, engaged, ask the tough questions.
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  I think what we've learned today is this a strong embeds work,
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  independent, ethical, that's vital for our democracy.
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  They're the experts, they protect the process, and in the
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  end, they serve us, the people. And now with information moving
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  so fast, all this political pressure, the divide's getting
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  bigger. Their role is even more
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  important. So here's a final thought to
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  leave you with How can we as citizens in a democracy support
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  the Embedsburg? How do we make sure they stay
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  strong, independent, serving the people in the long run?
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  Something to think about.