Denmark’s pensions and insurance lobby group said the public sector needs to speed up its decisions on climate and sustainable energy projects, particularly in the light of tight public finances, as there is a large amount of private money available to invest in such plans.
Speaking just after the Danish Finance Minister Nicolai Wammen presented the government’s 2030 plan for fiscal policy this morning, the chief executive officer of Insurance and Pensions Denmark (IPD) said the plan – which contained important priorities for security, climate, energy and welfare – emphasised that there was limited room for manoeuvre in the public economy.
Kent Damsgaard, IPD’s CEO, said: “The government’s 2030 plan clearly shows that the kingdom is short of money, and at the same time we urgently need to solve Denmark’s long-term challenges with our climate and energy supply, our welfare and security.”
These needs could not possibly be met using state coffers alone, he said.
“There is a need for the government and the state to think in broad and joint solutions – together with the many private players who are ready,” he said.
Damsgaard said Danish pension funds, for example, had the money and the will to invest in green projects, but there was a need for the public sector to be “much, much faster” in deciding and executing such projects.
“There are too many good, green investments that are allowed to gather dust,” he said.
Wammen announced the government’s plans to ramp up investment in the green transition, defence and welfare, setting the target of finding DKK15bn (€2bn) by 2030 to achieve such goals.
IPD’s Damsgaard also called for close cooperation between the public and private sectors in prioritising and rethinking welfare in Denmark, saying that both the pension and insurance industries were ready to contribute to solving the growing problems concerning the elderly within the Danish public health sector.
“We can make a big difference by building on top of and supplementing core public welfare, and I really hope that the government and the Danish Parliament will invite both our industry and other welfare actors to find the solutions needed to ensure long-term welfare,” he said.
IPD said it would like to help realise the potential for an increase in employment among seniors by 7,500 people, which the government pointed to in its plan.
“There is still potential, especially in finding a good and flexible transition between job and pension,” Damsgaard said.
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