Politikerforum: Christiansborg should have trust representatives to ensure proper working conditions for politicians

“Why is there no collective framework for the working environment of politicians?”

We recently asked this question to a group of regional and municipal politicians when, under the auspices of Politikerforum, we had a visit from politician Jacob Mark, who personally experienced so much pressure that he went down with stress and ended up losing parts of his eyesight.

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Jacob Mark's response was that it is a personal task to ensure well-being and an appropriate workload, as there is no one else doing it. The political system does not look out for its politicians. This is pretty wild looking like that.

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The Danish public sector is generally characterized by a systematic effort to ensure the working environment through the MED system, trust and occupational safety representatives and a comprehensive occupational health and safety legislation. So in this light, it must be remembered that politicians are exempt from all this, and have not created a collective framework for their own work environment, which hinders the large number of stress cases.

Alarmingly high working pressure

The working pressure for elected officials in both regions, municipalities and Christiansborg is alarmingly high. We hear incessantly about mayors experiencing stress, and of regional and city council politicians who only serve a single term because the pressure at work is too great and does not allow for having a full-time job and a family life next door. We lose lots of political talent that way.

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Jacob Mark describes in his book 'Fartblind, 'how he was elected to the board very young and started with seven committee positions. And we wonder that we have procedures and rules in the Danish Parliament wherever possible.

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We agree that it is particularly challenging for the smaller parties to occupy various committee posts, but there should be rules to safeguard against predatory behaviour on politicians.

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In the absence of such rules, prioritising becomes an individual task, which is impossible in a world characterised by fierce competition and commitment to voters.

The media circus at Christiansborg

Most recently, we have seen the Alternative's Torsten Gejl suffer from stress after having held 52 rapporteurs over three years. The party has subsequently begun to involve experts from the party in the extensive preparation of committee meetings. That's fine, but where are the collective solutions?

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The media also exerts enormous pressure on politicians. In the old days, politicians had peace from out in the afternoon, when the editorial offices of newspapers closed. Today, the news feed runs 24-7.