Hillitty markkinatalous : Kokoomuksen ja SDP:n talouspoliittinen lähentyminen ja hallitusyhteistyö 1980-luvulla
The doctoral thesis of Jouko Marttila, Master of Social Sciences, in the field of political history puts in the historical context the convergence of economic policies of the National Coalition Party and the Social Democratic Party. The study focuses on party programmes with their ideological objectives and on two chronological phases in the post war economic policy of these two parties. The first phase deals with the economic policy after Korpilampi conference in the late 1970 s. The second phase concentrates on co-operation between conservatives and social democrats in prime minister Harri Holkeri´s government in 1987-1990. The study describes how the National Coalition Party and the Social Democratic Party converged their economic policies despite of opposite starting points and ended in favour of common economic policy limited market economy. The Coalition Party transformed its policy from people's capitalism and the market economy towards welfare state ideology. SDP aspired to reconcile the socialist planned economy with the market economy. In practise the solution for both parties was restrained market economy within the Nordic welfare model. The traditional ideological ideals and objectives were left behind. The dissertation shows how the global economy, changes in social and economic structures, and the internal political power struggle affected the implementation of economic policies. SDP had to adjust their policies in an environment where international oil crisis did not eventually lead to the overthrow of capitalism, but instead made the centralized economic planning and state control as well as implementation of Keynesian policies redundant. At the same time the growth of middle class voters strengthened the support for the Coalition Party. Based on the dissertation SDP's ideological transformation was deeper than Coalition Party's. SDP abandoned the goal of full employment and democratic socialism and accepted the basic principles of market economy. The Coalition Party distanced itself from capitalism and employers agenda when it defended the working life reforms that strengthened the position of employees. The partial privatization of state-owned companies served the goals of both parties. For the Coalition Party it meant extension of shareholding society, for the social democrats it meant democratisation of capital in limited market economy.
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