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Veganerpartiet gets green light to run in next general election

Ben Hamilton
September 14th, 2020


This article is more than 4 years old.

New party will lean towards Socialdemokratiet – so just like in the TV series ‘Borgen’ – but only slightly

Co-founder Michael Monberg (photo: Kirstine Ruby)

At first glance to internationals who struggle with the Danish language, Veganerpartiet sounds like the kind of party where celery and carrot sticks have displaced the barbecue and the White Russians only come in soya flavour (urrgh!).

But no, this isn’t a festivity for vegans, it’s a new political party that will be competing in the next general election, as it has now officially received the 20,000 signatures necessary to get the green light.

G for green?
Fittingly, perhaps, it will bear the letter ‘G’ on the ballot form, as Denmark does not have a green party (unless you include the one in the series ‘Borgen’). 

The country’s last green party, De Grønne, was dissolved in 2014. Attempts to found a new one over the following year, Det Grønne Parti, failed.

Press conference on September 28
The Ministry of Social Affairs and the Interior today confirmed that at least 20,000 of its 20,182 voter declarations are genuine.

However, Veganerpartiet has said it won’t speak to the media until its press conference in Copenhagen on September 28. 

Slight preference for Socialdemokratiet
Nevertheless, it is believed its policy will include improved animal welfare and sustainable food production in which “as few resources as possible are wasted until the end product”.

“Animals are living beings and must be treated properly and protected as best as possible against pain, suffering, anxiety, lasting harm and significant inconvenience,” writes the party on its website.

Party co-founder Michael Monberg has previously stated that Veganerpartiet leans towards Socialdemokratiet, but only “10 percent”, as it is the “least bad option”. 


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Moreover, 21 percent of those surveyed admitted to medicating their kids with paracetamol, such as Panodil, before sending them to school.

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“I think it is absolutely crazy. It simply cannot be that a child goes to school sick and plays with lots of other children. Then we are faced with the fact that they will infect the whole institution,” said FOLA chair Signe Nielsen.

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At Børnehuset there are fears that parents prefer to pack their kids off with a pill without informing teachers.

“We occasionally have children who that they have had a pill for breakfast,” said headteacher Susanne Bødker. “You might think that it is a Panodil more than a vitamin pill, if it is a child who has just been sick, for example.”

Parents sick and tired
Parents, when confronted, often cite pressure at work as a reason for not being able to stay at home with their children.

Many declare that they simply cannot take another day off, as they are afraid of being fired.

Allan Randrup Thomsen, a professor of virology at KU, has heavily criticised the parents’ actions, describing the current situation as a “vicious circle”.

“It promotes the spread of viruses, and it adds momentum to a cycle where parents are pressured by high levels of sick-leave. If they then choose to send the children to daycare while they are still recovering, they keep the epidemic going in daycares, and this in turn puts a greater burden on the parents.”