My opinion: Jón Gnarr - The Political Culture Has to Change

On the news this week we heard that the computer giant Apple had been interested in meeting with the prime minister or the president to discuss the possibility of opening a data center in Iceland. This, however, was on the condition that either one of them would visit Apple’s headquarters in the United States. It turned out that neither the office of the president nor the prime ministry answered this request in a formal way. It is not clear how important this was, whether Apple was really interested in Iceland, or whether this was just speculation. It does not matter now because Apple has announced that this data center will be opened in Denmark.

I know more examples like this. Apple is not the only giant computer company that has been interested in Iceland. Other companies have wanted to have an operation here, and some have even sent their representatives here to review the facilities and talk to the government. Last summer, there was a delegation here from Bitcoin, which runs a number of data centers all over the world. Bitcoin was interested in moving the best part of their operation to Iceland. They even had a formal meeting with people from the Central Bank. But nothing came out of these plans, and I gather that Bitcoin simply gave up and left the country in a kind of a huff. We have many opportunities to sell electricity. In many ways, Iceland is suitable for data centers. Data centers require much electricity, both for the computer equipment and especially for the cooling system. We can produce a lot of inexpensive electricity. Our electricity is also ecofriendly. This is a concept that keeps getting more valuable. We don’t use fossil fuel or nuclear energy to produce electricity. The climate in Iceland should also be suitable for an operation like this. The climate is rather mild all year round, it never becomes too hot in the summer, and very rarely too cold during the winter. Undoubtedly, a building could be designed that could use the climate for cooling. The possibilities seem endless. And why shouldn’t we be able to open giant data centers here, just like aluminum plants?

Anti-Service

I know public institutions in Iceland from considerable experience, having been an Icelander for half a century. I have many dreadful memories of my dealings with them, whether it was the Motor Vehicle Inspection Agency, the State Alcohol and Tobacco Company, the Statistical Bureau, the National Register or the Parliament itself. I haven’t found these institutions to be particularly open to innovation or change. They have been rather against such things and have conducted a service policy characterized by some kind of anti-service. The institution I have had the most dealings with through the years is the State Radio (RÚV). I have always thought RÚV was a badly run organization. Again and again, I have approached them with all kinds of ideas, and they have usually been badly received. There has been a lack of professional reception of ideas and professional processing. Usually I have had to get a meeting with the program manager, who seemed to have absolute power. He isn’t always available, and when he is available he doesn’t always have time to read some scripts. And the programming seems to follow some whims or even favoritism at the expence of professionalism. RÚV, therefore, is responsible for many of the worst disgraces on Icelandic television. But I understand this is changing with new managers.

In my capacity as mayor, I had to go to a number of conferences in the other Nordic countries. Usually the mayor goes to such conferences with representatives of the political parties on the city council. The group is usually accompanied by one or two officials. I soon noticed that the other capitals did this differently. They usually sent an army of officials and experts, and one or two politicians. The conferences of the Nordic capitals used to be a venue for politicians to meet other politicians to discuss politics. They no longer are. The discussions are more technical now and more specialized than they used to be, and deal with climate issues, sustainability, public health and transportation. The conferences have lost their political relevance and are more practical now.

Outdated, Stale and Inefficient Administration

In many ways the Icelandic administration is outdated, stale and inefficient. You cannot always blame individual politicians or officials, but the system they work with, and even the rules themselves. The Icelandic administration is not particularly open to unexpected or unusual ideas. The lack of professionalism and skepticism about scholarly arguments are a blight in Icelandic politics. The administration is too political at the cost of professionalism. We put too much emphasis on individual leaders and the leadership and management qualities of individuals. This is an out of date and primitive approach. Modern administration is based on the cooperation of different specialists, who have the education and background needed to do projects well and bring about the results for the people. In the end, we are the ones who pay for all of this. The role of the politicians is first and foremost to form strategy and then to make sure that the strategy is followed. It is not the role of the politicians to interfere unnecessarily with daily operations.

We can all change this. We are a small nation. We need clear and simple rules and an administration that is flexible and can adapt to fast changes. The political culture has to change and be modernized. Our financial standing has always depended on flexibility, resourcefulness and how quickly we can adjust to innovations. The administration must become like that. Iceland is the land of opportunity. If we are aware of it.