The fight for the regional level
– A fight for the welfare state? As exemplified by the process of establishing Region Mid-Jutland throughout 2006

Region Mid-Jutland is one of the five Danish regions that became a reality at the beginning of 2007. AKF and the University of Southern Denmark have followed the development of this region as an example of the creation of the regional level. The process in 2006, in which many of the fundamental patterns should have been set, can be described as a fight for the Region’s position. In relation to the local authorities, the fight has been about how many tasks the local authorities have chosen to carry out themselves and the success of the joint strategies in the health sector, regional development and social initiatives. In relation to the central government, the fight has been about how much freedom and how much responsibility the Regions will be given. The clarification of the actual position of the regional level has come quite a long way, but is by no means complete.