You ask me how to rebuild trust in Iceland. Here are my two cents:
Starting point for rebuilding trust, both internally and externally, is to design and implement policies which make sense and work (the Product). Acknowledge mistakes, draw conclusions and come up with bold policy proposals to move forward. Be absolutely transparent and participatory in the communications (we need all of you here to get out of this mess).
Create a ‘We’ feeling, rather then we are the victims and the guys at the top always mess up.
Act and communicate along the following lines:
We made mistakes because we had too much trust in the invisible hand of the market – we had become market fundamentalists. We were not alone in this, but we were possibly among the most extreme and the most exposed. PM should offer to resign, but say that this will not solve the issue.
Clear message that government is working 24/7 and engages the best brains in Iceland and the world.
Priorities now are: short term crisis management, introducing tight banking regulation which helps avoid repeat in the future, and economic reform which gets economy through crisis and helps build sustainable economy in the future. This is also important for FDI confidence.
Build in the message that Iceland has great potential which has not gone away. ‘We have to create a new Wirtschaftswunder’. And as in Germany after the war it will be hard.
Engage the best brains in the world to help in tackling these priorities. Take them to Iceland and give media exposure (We work with the best people in the World). One brain could be George Soros who has long warned about the crisis and what led to them.
Launch and moderate a national debate about the Future of Iceland (the vision thing). This should build on the best of new media, ask the Obama campaign people.
All this will be much easier if the fresh start comes also with a fresh face, the Icelandic Obama. If this is not possible, at least a major reshuffle of the top people. These people need to talk to everyone ‘We need everyone here to get out of the mess’.
In sum:
Fresh start (admit mistakes + 24/7 crisis management + design long term economic policy framework)
Best would be fresh face(s)
Build community sense of ‘Aermel hochkrempeln’
Get the best minds in the world to Iceland to help
National vision debate
This is from far away (Brussels) and may be all too basic. Most is probably already done. If so, ignore.
Good luck,
Andre
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