Strukturreformen

One controversial reform was that the Danish government would take over the running of hospitals along with the total abolition of counties and replacement by regions.

This was presented on 14 January 2004 in the Vingsted center in Egtved Municipality in the presence of almost 1,000 politicians, civil servants, administrative researchers and over 100 journalists.

There was a majority in support for the reforms after the Danish People's Party gave its support to the Venstre–Conservative People's Party coalition governments reform on 24 June 2004 in the Structure Agreement.

Ertholmene was not included in the reform, and is still today administered by the Ministry of Defence.

[6] In April 2004, the government (Venstre and Conservative People's Party) presented its proposal for a reform of the structure of the public sector : "The new Denmark - a simple public sector close to the citizen".

The report with various recommendations/proposals for the future number of regions/regional administrative levels - or none, since the state could take over the administration of hospitals - and municipalities was presented at a meeting for 900 politicians, civil servants, management researchers and interest organizations as well as 150 journalists on 14 January 2004 in the Vingsted center in the then Egtved Kommune near Vejle.

The play subsequently formed the basis for negotiations between the government and the other parties in the Folketing.

The structural agreement was three-pronged and included partly criteria for a new (geographical) division of municipalities and regions, partly a new distribution of tasks between municipalities, regions and the state and finally a financing and equalization reform [da].

Based on the framework agreement, 50 legislative proposals were drawn up during the autumn of 2004.

A ministerial order, which was signed on 29 June 2005 by Minister of the Interior and Health Lars Løkke Rasmussen, entered into force on 1 July 2005.

The Capital Region of Denmark has its administration in Hillerød, and consists of 29 new municipalities.

However, the municipality's citizens decided in a referendum on 18 November 2004 to remain independent.

Due to its remote location, several tasks that in the rest of Denmark belong to the regions are handled by the municipality itself.

In addition, the settlement parties originally demanded that a referendum be held in Bjerning, Fjelstrup and Hjerndrup Parishes (all in Christiansfeld Municipality ), but several parishes wanted to join Haderslev Municipality, so advocate Thorkild Simonsen was sent there.

The centres were located in the following cities:[7] The purpose of the reform was "to create a new Denmark, where a strong and future-proof public sector solves the tasks with high quality and as close to the citizens as possible.

[9][10] In the first ten years after the structural reform, 325 primary schools were closed, or approximately one in five.