In the welfare Olympics, Sweden wins gold

Sweden is winning gold in the "welfare Olympics," according to Bloomberg columnist Adrian Wooldridge, who describes the Swedish model as a liberal example for the world.

Wooldridge, a regular visitor to Sweden and commentator on its societal structure, noted during a recent visit that the country consistently ranks at or near the top in international assessments of educational opportunities, political and gender equality, and overall life satisfaction. He suggested that if the Olympics awarded medals for human well-being, Sweden would dominate.

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If the Olympics awarded medals for human well-being, the rest of the world would tire of seeing Swedes collect gold, silver, and bronze.

However, Wooldridge cautions against misinterpreting Sweden's success as a result of democratic socialism, a notion he attributes partly to figures like Bernie Sanders. He argues that Swedes have resisted anti-business sentiment prevalent elsewhere in the West. Wooldridge points out that Sweden has twice the number of billionaires per capita as the United States, and 22 percent of Swedes own stocks directly.

He attributes this success to a series of market-oriented reforms implemented by successive liberal governments. These reforms included reducing public spending as a share of GDP, significantly lowering top marginal tax rates, and abolishing taxes on property, gifts, wealth, and inheritance. Furthermore, Sweden introduced a school choice system and allowed private companies to provide publicly funded healthcare and elder care services. The country also boasts the highest number of startup "unicorns" per capita in Europe, with successes like Spotify, alongside a robust manufacturing and engineering sector.

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Swedes have shown themselves immune to the anti-business backlash sweeping the West.